A video on social media showing a man apparently tying the Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah’s shoelaces has caused consternation to the Congress government in the state. The incident took place at Siddaramaiah’s Mysuru house, and initial reports claimed the person helping him was a personal assistant who lives there.

The 68-year-old Congress leader, however, claimed it was relative who bent down looking for his shoes. “I want to clarify that nobody was putting my shoes on. The photo in question was taken while a relative had bent down to look for my shoes.” The chief minister’s office, too, clarified saying it was indeed a relative and not a member of the Chief Minister’s staff.

The Opposition Bharatiya Janata Party dubbed Siddaramaiah as “arrogant” and “pseudo socialist”. “Absolutely disgusting that Siddaramaiah gets his shoes fitted by an assistant,” Karnataka BJP general secretary and MLA CT Ravi tweeted.

Earlier this year, Siddaramaiah was embroiled in another controversy over an expensive Hublot watch gifted to him by a friend. However, the Chief Minister later handed over the watch to the Legislative Assembly Speaker Kagodu Thimmappa to make it a state asset.