Kumaraswamy sails through
“I want to assure everybody that no group or person will have to hit the streets in protest because our government will work for the benefit of all,” Kumaraswamy said.
“Yeddyurappa also said that he had travelled extensively across the state for two years leading up to the elections and that he has a lot of information on the plight of the people. I appeal to him to give this information so that we can work for the welfare of the people of the state,” he said.
Responding to the BJP’S criticism for not announcing a farm loan waiver of ₹53,000 crore that he had promised to do within 24 hours of being elected, Kumaraswamy said he did not need lessons on farmers’ welfare from anybody.
“I did not say that I would not waive loans. I said I would now have to consult with my coalition partners before announcing such a policy,” he said.
Ever since the Congress decided to extend support to Kumaraswamy to form the government, the BJP had accused him of being an opportunist, who is continually hungry for power. “It was this same party that had approached me to form a coalition government when I was a first-time MLA in 2006,” he said.
On a day of settling old political scores, Yeddyurappa, in his response to the chief minister’s speech, warned the Congress that Kumaraswamy and his father, the former prime minister HD Deve Gowda, were out to destroy the party.
“Heed my warning, this father-son duo will completely destroy your party and there won’t be a Congress left in the state,” he said.
Yeddyurappa also criticised the Congress for allegedly sidelining former chief minister Siddaramaiah. “Even before the results were out on May 15, the Congress’s leaders had reached Deve Gowda’s house, showing little respect to Siddaramaiah,” he said. The former CM also warned Congress leader DK Shivakumar that he would stand no chance of becoming a chief minister if he continued in the Congress.
Yeddyurappa made a slew of allegations of corruption against Kumaraswamy and the Deve Gowda family, claiming that apart from illegally distributing whole areas to the family, Kumaraswamy had also been involved in illegalities in mining.
“If farm loans are not waived within 24 hours, I will call for a voluntary bandh on Monday,” Yeddyurappa said, before walking out of the House along with the other BJP MLAS.
An irate Kumaraswamy called for a special session to discuss the antecedents of all those who were present in the House to decide who had the moral right to question whom. “If I bring out a complete list of Yeddyurappa’s deeds he will not be able to face the public,” he said.
Last April, during by-elections for the Srinagar Lok Sabha seat, Major Gogoi had tied a civilian, Farooq Ahmad Dar, to the bonnet of his jeep as a human shield to deter stone-pelters from targeting his troops. The incident led to a human rights controversy. General Rawat awarded Gogoi a commendation card for his “sustained efforts” on counter-insurgency operations.
Gogoi was detained by the police on Wednesday along with a woman and another army man from a city hotel after they had an altercation with the hotel staff. Gogoi was later handed over to his unit in Budgam.
The woman was handed over to her parents after her statement was recorded in front of a Magistrate. In her statement, the woman reportedly told the police that she had gone with the officer of her own volition. On Friday, the woman’s family refused to comment on the incident and said she had been sent to her maternal uncle’s home.
The Army chief, on a two-day Kashmir visit, on Friday visited South Kashmir to review the situation with formation commanders, especially after a unilateral ceasefire was announced in the Valley. South Kashmir is currently considered militancy hotbed with many local and foreign militants active in the districts of Kulgam, Pulwama, Shopian and Anantnag.
REACTING TO BJP’S CRITICISM, HE SAID HE DID NOT NEED LESSONS ON FARMERS’ WELFARE FROM ANYBODY