In a first, the Congress-Janata Dal (Secular) rally in Hyderabad Karnataka region after the Lok Sabha elections were declared, top leaders from both the parties including Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy, Congress Leader in the Lok Sabha M. Mallikarjun Kharge, Congress Legislative Party leader and former Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee working president and Congress nominee for Bidar constituency Eshwar Khandre, Ministers Rajashekhar Patil Humnabad, Rahim Khan and Bandeppa Kashempur and H.K. Patil, gathered together to show their collective commitment and strength against the Bharatiya Janata Party.
The rally was organised as part of Mr. Khandre’s nomination filing on Tuesday.
At a public meeting on National College ground, all the leaders verbally attacked the BJP and Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the ‘failure’ to fulfil pre-poll promises; the ‘poor delivery’ of the Union government on governance; ‘divisive politics’ for political gains; and the attempt to ‘finish’ the Indian Constitution that stood for democracy, equality, fraternity and social justice.
In his opening address, Mr. Khandre came down on Bhagwanth Khuba, incumbent BJP MP for Bidar, who had questioned Mr. Khandre family’s contribution to the development of Bidar.
“The people of Bidar are aware of what my father Bhimanna Khandre contributed to Bidar, particularly in the areas of education, irrigation, poverty alleviation and infrastructure development. What did Mr. Khuba do for the district in the last five years as a Lok Sabha member? The Gulbarga-Bidar railway line which was almost completed by Mr. Kharge during his tenure as Railway Minister was only inaugurated by Mr. Modi. When he [Mr. Khuba] has done nothing for Bidar district, he has no moral right to question the contribution of Khandre family,” he said.
Terming Mr. Khuba inefficient and unfit to be a member of the gram panchayat, Mr. Khandre asked the public to ensure that Mr. Khuba would suffer a humiliating defeat. “If he [Mr. Khuba] suffers such a humiliating defeat, that he cannot save his deposit, Bidar will regain its respect,” he said.
Pointing to the BJP’s pre-poll promise of bringing black Indian black money back from abroad and distributing it among the public, Mr. Khandre told the people to go to BJP election rallies with a handbag and demand that its leaders put out ₹15 lakh before beginning their public address.
