Add thelocalreport.in As A Trusted Source
Bengaluru, Nov 23 (IANS) Former Prime Minister and JD(S) national president HD Deve Gowda announced that the party will not break its alliance with the NDA under any circumstances.
He said, “We have full confidence in the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Amit Shah.”
Addressing party workers and leaders after inaugurating the JDS silver jubilee celebrations, Deve Gowda reiterated, “We stand firmly with the NDA. We have faith in the leadership of Prime Minister Modi. A strong government has been formed under his leadership. Our workers and leaders should never forget this.”
At the event, Deve Gowda declared, “In the North, it is JD(U). In the South, it is JD(S),” emphasizing, “There it is Nitish Kumar, and here it is Kumaraswamy.”
He said, “Nitish Kumar has been in politics for 30 years. He has taken oath ten times. He is a sharp and intelligent political leader. We should keep this in mind as we move forward.”
Recalling the party’s long association with national politics, he said, “During the Emergency, we worked with Jayaprakash Narayan and the then BJP in the second freedom struggle. In the interest of the nation, we must continue to work together. The Congress must be taught a lesson for its bad governance.”
Deve Gowda criticized Siddaramaiah for his statement in Chamarajanagar that he would never have become the chief minister if he had remained in JD(S). “I was ready to make him the chief minister,” Gowda said.
He told that at that time Sonia Gandhi had insisted on making Dharam Singh the Chief Minister of Karnataka. “In Kashmir, you made Ghulam Nabi Azad the Deputy Chief Minister and Mufti Mohammad Sayeed the Chief Minister. Similarly, I went to Sonia Gandhi’s doorstep thrice and requested her to make Siddaramaiah the Chief Minister of Karnataka. If Siddaramaiah wants clarity, he can ask him; he is still alive.”
Accusing Siddaramaiah of distorting facts, Gowda said, “You never speak the truth. You say whatever suits the moment. But Sonia Gandhi knows the truth. Ahmed Patel also knew this. Sonia was completely opposed to making you the CM. You had said you should be our CM candidate, or you will go to the polls. With no option left, we agreed,” Gowda recalled.
He revealed that he had borrowed Rs 2 crore at midnight from a land businessman named Channappa to help the party win 58 seats. He thundered, “Where was Siddaramaiah then? When you speak, at least show some honesty. Don’t lie.”
Gowda raised questions on Siddaramaiah’s claims of credibility. “Late Ramakrishna Hegde served as Chief Minister for eight years. Did he make you Finance Minister? It was I who made you Finance Minister. Neither Hegde nor late SR Bommai gave you this responsibility.”
He further asked, “What scholar are you? Have you studied finance at Oxford University? Are you a Supreme Court lawyer? You are not even a High Court lawyer. You argued just one or two cases in Mysuru. I am alive, Sonia Gandhi is alive, don’t lie. Tell us: What have you contributed to the JD(S)?”
Referring to Siddaramaiah’s previous posting, Gowda said, “Hegde made you the chairman of the Kannada Kavalu Committee. Later, you handled animal husbandry or some other small department. When Veerappa Moily was the CM and the government had no money to pay salaries, Rs 200 crore was borrowed from the Peerless Company. After that, you were made the finance minister. You know very well that the financial condition of the state was bad. I took the initiative to fix it. It was my mistake to make you the finance minister for the state,” he said.
JDS chief Gowda said, “There were many occasions when I shed tears after making him the deputy chief minister. I made him the finance minister, not Hegde. He should remember this.”
He said that Siddaramaiah has not made any contribution to the party. “When I suggested making him the state president of the party, the late Ramakrishna Hegde held my hand and said: ‘Make whomever you want, but not this man.’ But I ignored Hegde’s advice,” Gowda said.
Referring to internal disputes, Gowda said, “They claim that I flourished politically because of Mallikarjun Kharge and Jalappa. I sanctioned a medical college for the Kharge community and named it after Devaraj Urs. Today, it has become the personal property of the Jalappa family instead of belonging to the community. This is their idea of social justice!”
He further said, “When they planned the Ahinda conference, I said it should be done on the party platform. They did not listen and organized it separately in Hubli. In the end, I had no option but to expel him from the party. I have no regrets. Many such people have come and gone. I am not afraid. I will rebuild this party. I will go wherever I am needed. Deve Gowda is not the kind of person who sits idle.”
–IANS
mka/uk