All the four Union Ministers from Karnataka on Friday assured the people that the Centre would not discriminate against the State just because it was being governed by the Congress.
At the same time, they urged the Congress government to reciprocate by cooperating with the Union government and desist from looking at it with suspicion.
The Ministers expressed these views after they were felicitated by the Bharatiya Janata Party on their first visit to the State after being sworn-in as Ministers. They were taken in a procession from the Kempegowda International Airport to the Bangalore Palace Grounds where they were felicitated along with other BJP MPs.
Union Minister Ananth Kumar declared that Prime Minister Narendra Modi did not believe in political discrimination.
“We will not discriminate against States such as Karnataka just because they are ruled by the Congress. We will have to implement our welfare measures only through the federal system. But the State government (Karnataka) should also desist from looking at the Centre through the political spectacles.” He assured the people of Karnataka that the Modi regime would bring in a “golden period” for them in terms of development.
Urban Development Minister M. Venkaiah Naidu said special initiative would be taken up for the development of Bangalore. Ruling out any discrimination against Karnataka, he said, “We will work together with the State. We believe in taking the support, giving the support and moving forward.” Railways Minister D.V. Sadananda Gowda noted that already there were demands from several leaders to clear various railway projects for the State, including the circular railway project for Bangalore city.
The former Chief Minister B.S. Yeddyurappa felt that the BJP could have won four more Lok Sabha seats if it had put in more effort. However, the Congress had been grounded both in the country and the State, he said. The former Deputy Chief Minister K.S. Eshwarappa called upon party workers to focus on regaining power in Karnataka and said the Congress government would soon collapse.
The former Chief Minister Jagadish Shettar alleged that protests by police personnel had showed that there was anarchy in the State. He predicted that political situation was set for a change in two to three months in the State.
