Bellari: Leader of Opposition in the Karnataka Assembly Siddaramaiah on Wednesday took a swipe at Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai and said that he shivers like a puppy before Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The senior Congress leader also slammed the Chief Minister for his alleged failure to bring Rs 5,495 crore into the State as recommended by the 15th Finance Commission.
Addressing a public meeting on Wednesday, Siddaramaiah challenged Bommai to show some courage. “Basavaraj Bommai, you are like a puppy in front of Narendra Modi. You tremble before him,” the Congress leader remarked. The former Chief Minister also pointed out that the 15th Finance Commission in its interim report recommended Rs 5,495 crore as a special allowance for Karnataka.
Chief Minister Bommai hit back, saying Siddaramaiah's statement mirrors his personality. Just like a faithful dog, he is loyal to the people of the State.
Bommai said PM Modi is like a 'kamadhenu' (wish-fulfilling cow) who gave many projects to Karnataka, which never happened since independence. “But our Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitaramam, a Rajya Sabha member from Karnataka, wrote to the Finance Commission chairperson N K Singh that it is not possible for us to give the Rs 5,495 crore. She asked the chairperson to drop the issue,” Siddaramaiah claimed.
“Karnataka sent 25 BJP MPs to the Lok Sabha. You (Bommai) came to power through ‘Operation Lotus' in Karnataka. If you have guts and courage, then get Rs 5,495 crore from the Centre,” the Congress said to the Chief Minister.
Reacting to that, Bommai said the people would give a befitting reply to the Leader of the Opposition in the Assembly election which is about four months away. “The statement shows the personality of the Congress leader,” Bommai told reporters in Ballari. He added that just like a dog, which is a faithful animal, he would also remain faithful.
“I have not divided society as Siddaramaiah did. We have given happiness unlike Congress which gave misfortune,” the Chief Minister said. "Narendra Modi gave 6,000 km of highway to Karnataka which is a record in the post-independence period. He gave approval also to the Bengaluru-Mysuru highway project, Mangaluru-Karwar ports and Kalasa-Bandura project,” Bommai told reporters.
He said that in the coming days, the Upper Krishna project would be declared a national project and grants would be released. The Smart City project has been sanctioned for all major cities. This was not the case during the UPA regime. All the important projects have been given by Modi, he said.
