Insecurity haunts Siddaramaiah: Basavaraj Bommai

BENGALURU: Former Karnataka chief minister Basavaraj Bommai on Tuesday said that insecurity haunts Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and it is due to this insecurity he is busy in politicking.

“Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar has been fighting for Chief Minister’s post while others are busy in securing the Deputy Chief Ministers post,” Bommai said while talking to reporters after submitting a memorandum to Governor Thawar Chand Gehlot seeking his directions for the state government to give suitable compensation to farmers in the wake of severe drought.

He said that everyone has forgotten the state's development and is indulging in politics.

“Seeing the current financial situation, the government may impose fresh conditions to continue the guarantees after the parliamentary polls,” Bommai said.

Accusing the state government of indulging in politics at a time when the farmers are in dire need due to the severe drought, Bommai said that any government that fails to give justice to farmers will not last long.

“Any government which will come to the rescue of people during drought or floods is considered as a living government. Doing anything for the people will be deemed as a dead government,” he said.

He said that the Congress had requested the Centre to release Rs 18,000 crore as drought relief but the state government has only released Rs 105 crore which was not even one per cent of the relief amount sought by the central government.

He said that the Chief Minister, before the Belagavi session, had promised to give a compensation of Rs 2,000 per hectare but that amount has not been released yet under the garb of linking Aadhar number of farmers.

“The linking of Aadhar had been done during the previous BJP regime in the FRUITS software,” he said.

Bommai said no development work has started in the state after the Congress came to power and Rs 3,000 crore reserved for the Kalyana-Karnataka in the budget has also not been spent.

“The benefits of the Gruha Lakshmi have failed to reach women and the Gruha Jyoti and Yuva Nidhi have not benefited the people in any manner. No guarantee scheme had been implemented effectively. Since the government has failed to release the money to farmers, the BJP has sought direction from the Governor,” he said.