WAR OF WORDS ERUPTS BETWEEN SIDDARAMAIAH, HDK

A political slugfest has erupted between former Chief Ministers Siddaramaiah and H D Kumaraswamy with the two leaders blaming each other for the collapse of the CongressJD(S) coalition government in Karnataka. The unease that existed between the former alliance partners ever since the fall of the alliance government in July has now come out in the open with the announcement of bypolls for the 15 Assembly constituencies, in which both parties will go it alone. "Kumaraswamy does not speak with sense. G T Devegowda who is JD(S) MLA and was minister in his cabinet has recently said that Kumaraswamy had asked him to get votes transferred to BJP candidates in Mysuru and Chamarajanagra (during Lok Sabha polls)," Siddaramaiah told reporters in Hubballi. "Now he (Kumaraswamy) is playing drama... because byelections have come he is into theatrics," he added. The Congress leader was reacting to Kumaraswamy's comments blaming local Congress under Siddaramaiah's leadership for the defeat of his father H D Deve Gowda in Tumakuru, son Nikhil Kumaraswamy in Mandya and for the defeat of Congress' own candidate K H Muniyappa in Kolar. Referring to a popular Kannada song in which a parrot nurtured by its owner goes on to betray and inflict pain on him, Siddaramaiah in a tweet chided Kumaraswamy and said,"... it is my mistake. Despite having four decades of political association and experience, we believed eagle as parrot and allied with it. Will it not inflict pain? What is bigger lesson than experience?" Seeking to turn the tables, Kumaraswamy squarely blamed Siddaramaiah for the collapse of the government alleging that the CLP leader was unable to fathom the fact that the JD(S) leader had become the Chief Minister of the coalition government.