Siddaramaiah accuses Bommai of faking the number of dead during COVID-19 crisis

He was addressing a series of public meetings in Shiggaon Assembly Constituency as part of poll campaigning for his party candidate

Addressing a series of public meetings in Shiggaon Assembly Constituency on Monday, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah began his two-day poll campaigning asking the electorate to consider him (Siddaramaiah) as the “official candidate” and elect him [party candidate] to the Assembly.

The Chief Minister used the poll podium to attack the former Chief Minister and now BJP MLA Basavaraj Bommai saying that Mr. Bommai created a record of sorts in corruption during COVID-19 by faking the number of dead.

The Chief Minister launched his two-day poll campaign from Hulagur village, the native of former MLA Sayed Azeem Peer Khadri who withdrew his nomination papers after jumping into the fray as an Independent candidate.

Mr. Siddaramaiah praised Mr. Khadri and said that he is ready to vacate his Assembly membership for his (Siddaramaiah’s) sake.

He also announced that Mr. Khadri will be given a suitable position in the days to come in recognition of his work for the party.

Attacking the Bommai family, he said that the BJP candidate Bharath Bommai is the son and grandson of two former Chief Ministers and against him, the Congress has fielded Pailwan Pathan from a normal family.

Getting Mr. Pathan elected will further strengthen my hands and winning all the three seats this time will give a boost to the Congress government in the State, he said.

Mr. Siddaramaiah said that the BJP and Prime Minister Narendra Modi were earlier saying that it was impossible to implement the guarantee schemes. However, within five months of coming to power, the Congress has implemented the guarantee schemes successfully benefitting lakhs of people.

But the lies of BJP and Mr. Modi have continued, he said.

The former Chief Ministers B.S. Yediyurappa and Basavaraj Bommai have outrightly rejected the farmers demand for loan waiver when in power, he said. Now, what moral right do they have to seek farmers votes, he asked.

He also sought to know what contribution Mr. Bommai has made for Shiggaon as a former Minister and Chief Minister. Why a single house has not been constructed for the poor when he was in power, he asked.

Mentioning the Waqf controversy, he said that during their tenure, Mr. Yediyurappa, Mr. Bommai and the former Janata Dal(S) Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy have issued notices related to Waqf property. Despite the government clarifying that no farmer will be evicted and that all notices will be withdrawn, they are staging protests for political reasons, he said.

The Chief Minister said that the BJP is having a heartburn because he has implemented guarantee schemes effectively for the benefit of the poor and the middle class and appealed to voters to teach the BJP a lesson by electing Mr. Pathan.

The Chief Minister subsequently addressed election rallies at Huralikoppi village and Bankapur town seeking votes for the party candidate.

He was accompanied by Ministers H.K. Patil, Satish Jarkiholi, Shivanand Patil, Chief Whip Saleem Ahmed and the former MLA Sayed Azeem Peer Khadri during the poll meetings.

Published - November 04, 2024 09:08 pm IST