Chief Minister Siddaramaiah dedicated a major portion of his speeches during his tour of Chikkamagaluru district on Friday in criticising the leaders of the Bharatiya Janata Party and list the achievements of his government.
Mr. Siddaramaiah addressed rallies organised at Mudigere and Kadur.
He came down heavily on BJP leaders alleging that they were trying to divide society on communal lines and called upon the public not to heed to such thoughts.
In his speech at Mudigere, Mr. Siddaramaiah said he will be presenting the budget on February 16. “I have got an opportunity to complete the five-year-term as the Chief Minister after Devaraj Urs. No other Chief Minister after Urs got an opportunity to complete the full term,” he said.
During his rule, he said he had been in favour of coffee planters. “We have not taken any decision that is harmful to coffee planters,” he said.
In his address at Kadur, Mr. Siddaramaiah said the Upper Bhadra Project will provide water for Kadur. “The present government has spent over ₹ 1,500 crore. Villages of Chikkamagaluru, Chitradurga, Tumakuru, and Davangere will benefit,” he said. The Chief Minister said his government has spent over ₹ 45,000 crore towards improving irrigation facilities in the State.
“My intention is to make the State hunger-free, drought-free, and free from malnutrition. We have implemented Anna Bhagya, provided funds to fill tanks so that the State is free from drought, and Mathrupoorna scheme to tackle malnutrition,” he said.
He criticised the BJP leaders for their comments on Tipu Sultan. When B.S. Yeddyurappa was in the KJP, he participated in Tipu Jayanti celebrations. Similarly, Jagadish Shettar and other leaders have also participated. “But they have changed their opinion on Tipu Sultan now. People of the State understand their double standard on the issue,” he said.
He ended his speech seeking people’s blessings for him and the Congress.
People’s representatives and district-level officials were present in the programme.
The Congress will issue tickets in the forthcoming elections considering the winnability of candidates, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has said.
He was speaking at a rally in Kadur on Friday.
“We will give tickets only to those who can win. We will elicit opinion from party workers to decide on candidates. Congress is conducting a survey. I am also holding a survey from the government. The candidates will be decided based on the outcome of the survey reports”, he said. He made it clear that the Congress will not consider those who wish to put pressure on the party or bring supporters and raise slogans seeking tickets. “We will not fall for such tricks. Such tricks may boomerang on the aspirants,” he said.
Referring to his friendship with Kadur MLA Y.S.V. Datta of the JD(S), Mr. Siddaramaiah said, “We are good friends. Earlier, we were together in a party. Though he is in a different party now, we are still friends. He will be happy if I become the Chief Minister once again.”
