From Our Special Correspondent
Daijiworld Media Network
Kolar, Apr 11: Leader of Opposition and senior BJP leader R Ashoka went hammer and tongs at KPCC chief and Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar and termed the latter as “mad” and wondered Siddaramaiah's role in pulling down H D Kumaraswamy-led JD(S)-Congress coalition rule could be forgotten.
Addressing the media at Kolar on Thursday, he claimed that Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has openly admitted that he had sent 14 Congress and JD(S) MLAs to topple the coalition government and also mentioned that Siddaramaiah has stated that he was instrumental in defeating Kumaraswamy’s son Nikhil Kumaraswamy in Mandya in 2019.
“Shivakumar is talking about his own Vokkaliga community when Kumaraswamy’s government was pulled down by the Congress party. Obviously, something is wrong with him," he said.
He, however, did not speak about the 'Operation Kamala' that led to BJP leader B S Yediyurappa becoming the chief minister and the Congress-JD(S) MLAs, who joined the party to become ministers and contested in the subsequent by-election on a BJP ticket after resigning their seats.
Ashoka, who also belongs to the Vokkaliga community as Shivakumar and Kumaraswamy, said there was nothing wrong in BJP-JD(S) candidates in the elections meeting Adichunchanagri Math pontiff Sri Nirmalananda Swamiji as the Math belonging to Vokkaliga community loves all communities.
He also attacked the Siddaramaiah regime for its gross injustice to the Vokkaliga community in the name of caste census and mentioned that the Congress party has no moral right to seek the votes of Vokkaligas.
The BJP leader assailed the State Congress leaders of not seeking votes in the name of their leader Rahul Gandhi and merely harping on the Congress guarantees. “We are not ashamed to seek votes in the name of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his 10-year rule. Why isn’t the Congress talking about the UPA rule and their Prime Minister Manmohan Singh or Rahul Gandhi,” he asked.
Ashoka claimed that the Congress party is a divided house in Kolar with Food Minister K H Muniyappa and former Speaker Ramesh Kumar at loggerheads with each other and asserted that BJP and JD(S) will win both Kolar and Chikkaballapur seats.