Opposition party in Karnataka, the Congress, has stepped up agitation against the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) targeting its policies, in particular its relationship and attitude towards the mining lobby.
As part of the state-wide protest, party leaders held a dharna at the busy K R Circle here today, under the aegis of Mysore City (District) Congress Committee. Several district leaders, including Congress legislators, participated in the protest.
Opposition leader Siddaramaiah, who gave the call for a state-wide protest, was however not present. Prominent leaders including former Union minister and sitting MLA V Srinivasa Prasad, former minister and legislator Tanveer Sait, legislators Sathyanarayana and N Manjunath, former legislators Mukhathurnnisa Begum, M K Somashekar Mayor Purushotham and city Congress president C Dase Gowda.
Leaders who spoke at the dharna attacked the ruling BJP for “looting the mineral wealth of the state, failing to manage power supply, adopting anti-farmer policies and failing to respond to the people’s owes, and particularly the flood-hit”.
They charged the Yeddyurappa government with failing to take up pro-people programmes and schemes being implemented were those funded by the Centre.
The chief minister had surrendered to the mining lobby to retain his seat.
Mysore MP A H Viswanath at a separate press conference yesterday made a strong attack on the chief minister and the Reddy brothers. “It is not a pro-people government. But, a money-oriented government,” he charged and criticised the Yeddyurpapa government for failing to implement the Lok Ayukta report submitted a year ago on illegal mining in the state and also questioned its credibility in not consenting to a CBI inquiry.
The Congress MP urged the governor to act against the BJP government.
Objecting to the remarks of tourism minister Janardhan Reddy, Congress workers and supporters of Siddaramaiah burnt his effigy at the K R Circle. Led by former MLA M K Somashekar, they demanded the minister’s ouster from the government and a CBI probe into the mining issues.
The K S Puttannaiah faction of the Karnataka Rajya Rytha Sangha (KRRS) announced at a separate press meet that the state farmers would hold a dharna in Bangalore on December 11 and hand over a memorandum to the Governor urging for a CBI probe on the recommendations made by the State Lok Ayukta on illegal mining. The KRRS would also demand among other things dropping of ministers Janaradhan Reddy, Karunakar Reddy and Sriramulu from the cabinet, he said.
