Leader of the Opposition in the Assembly H.D. Kumaraswamy on Thursday shot back at the ruling party saying “nobody can question the contributions made by the former Prime Minister H.D. Deve Gowda to the irrigation sector” and blamed the Centre for meeting out injustice to the State in the Cauvery water sharing row.
Speaking on the motion of thanks to the Governor for his address, Mr. Kumaraswamy (JD-S) said the Union government had done injustice to the State by denying adequate share of Cauvery waters. The Tamil Nadu Government grabbed all opportunities to get maximum share in the Cauvery waters at the cost of the State.
Replying to Revenue Minister V. Srinivas Prasad’s charge that the Mr. Gowda had failed to formulate the National Water Policy when he was Prime Minister, Mr Kumaraswamy said “nobody can question the contributions made by former prime minister. Mr Gowda was the Prime Minister for only 10 months. Mr. Gowda needs no certification from you or anybody to prove his struggle to protect the State’s interest in the irrigation sector.”
Mr. Gowda safeguarded the interests of the State and made all efforts to get maxim share in waters in the Krishna and Cauvery basins, he said.
Rejected
Speaker Kagodu Thimmapa announced that he had not admitted a notice given by Mr. Kumaraswamy for amending the Governor’s speech delivered to the joint session of the legislature on June 3.
The Janata Dal (Secular) leader demanded deletion of the Governor’s reference to the Cauvery award in his speech. Governor H.R. Bhardwaj had said, “The long-pending extension, renovation and modernisation projects of the Cauvery basin will be taken up for approval of the Government of India, in conformity with the Cauvery award.”
