Mandya (Karnataka), April 8 (IANS) Responding to rumours suggesting that there is a difference of opinion between the BJP and his party, Union Minister for Heavy Industries and Steel H.D. Kumaraswamy clarified on Tuesday that “the JD (S)-BJP alliance is strong, and there’s no need for doubt.”
Speaking to reporters in Mandya city, Kumaraswamy stated, “Former CM and senior BJP leader D.V. Sadananda Gowda himself has suggested the formation of a JD (S)-BJP coordination committee. Many senior leaders have also recommended it. There is no threat to the alliance,” he added.
When asked about the BJP’s Janakrosha protest, Kumaraswamy said, “They are fighting to strengthen their party. They didn’t invite us. It’s their party’s event, and they have said so themselves. They are protesting against the Congress-led government. There’s no rift in the alliance. All are firmly together. Each party is working on its own organisational goals,” Kumaraswamy stated.
Launching a scathing attack on Minister for Agriculture N. Cheluvarayaswamy, Kumaraswamy said, “His claim that he made me the Chief Minister is the biggest joke. He should not forget that it was the MLAs who made me the CM.”
Responding strongly to journalists’ questions about Cheluvarayaswamy’s statement, Kumaraswamy further said, “The MLAs were with me, and that person knows it too. Did the MLAs come looking at his face? They came because they believed in me. Isn’t he aware of all this?”
“He is 100 per cent a joker. The ‘joker culture’ originated in the Congress party, and he should not forget that. Everyone knows where he was and where he went later. There’s no need to respond to such a person,” he said, indirectly referring to the minister without naming him.
Reacting to Minister Cheluvarayaswamy’s challenge to take an oath at the Hindu pilgrimage centre Dharmasthala in this regard, Kumaraswamy said, “I am ready to take the oath. When I became CM, did the MLAs come looking at his face? The struggle I went through to make him a minister was immense. He wouldn’t let me sleep till 3 am. Did 50 MLAs come because of him? He should not forget the effort I made on his behalf.”
“I don’t have the kind of habits he has. If you ask people in Mandya about his habits, they talk about them on the streets. It’s inappropriate to discuss such things — it’s in bad taste. The people of Mandya know what kind of taste he has. I know how many households this person has ruined. I never craved for money. I worked around the clock among the people, doing Janata Darshans and village stays. Serving the people is my personal commitment. I don’t have any of his vices. God is watching everything,” Kumaraswamy said emotionally.
He said, “Is discussing one’s personal life important? When we stay close to such treacherous people, problems are bound to arise. No human is perfect. God gives us a chance to correct our mistakes. I’ve admitted in the Assembly that I made a mistake once in my life. I’ve never said I’m faultless. But I know what all that man has done. Let’s move beyond these things and discuss people’s welfare,” Kumaraswamy opined.
Minister Cheluvarayaswamy was once a close associate of Union Minister Kumaraswamy and close to former PM H.D. Deve Gowda’s family. Quitting the JD (S) party, along with other leaders, he joined the Congress and went on to become Minister.
–IANS
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