‘Confined to K’taka as it’s doordie election for me’
GOING ALL OUT Former prime minister speaks to HT about his campaign plan for the May 12 polls in Karnataka and the possible benefits of his party’s alliance with Bahujan Samaj Party
BENGALURU: HD Deve Gowda, Janata Dal (Secular) supremo and former prime minister, believes that his party’s alliance with the Mayawati-led Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) may help it notch a victory in the May 12 Karnataka assembly elections. In an interview with
Gowda spoke about his party’s chances, its alliance with the BSP, and why the upcoming assembly election is a crucial one for him.
Vikram Gopal,
Have they done anything? The lesser I say about this government the better. They won’t be able to stop our momentum without saying such things. Why say such things in Hassan when they didn’t do it in the Mumbai-karnataka and Hyderabad-karnataka regions? That is because we will win all the 14 seats in Hassan and Mandya districts, and at least nine out of the 11 in Tumakuru. mocking him from behind. The chief minister was out distributing sweets while the verdict was still being analysed. The tribunal had already decided that five-six tmcft of water from our basin was to be diverted to unknown projects in Tamil Nadu. How can the state celebrate an additional allocation of around 15 tmcft? Look at the drinking water needs of people in the Cauvery basin region. ling 200-300 kilometres a day. The (pro-modi) euphoria of 2014 has died away. He might promise many things in this election, but will people take him seriously? I am the son of an ordinary farmer. I was part of the cooperative movement as well. I was the prime minister for 10 months, a chief minister for 17 months.
Not managing the media well was one of my biggest mistakes. Stories were planted against me every single day; they called me the sleeping prime minister.
I visited Kashmir five times during my short tenure, and sanctioned road projects and a university there.
I removed a rule in the defence forces that prevented Muslims from getting sensitive posts. I didn’t live a happy life because I always swam against the current.