Congress MLA from Devara Hipparagi constituency in Bagalkot district A.S. Patil Nadahalli, who had been demanding separate statehood for north Karnataka, did a volte-face on Friday by saying that separate statehood was not his agenda.
Speaking to presspersons after meeting veteran journalist Patil Puttappa at his residence in Hubballi on Friday, Mr. Nadahalli clarified that the development of North Karnataka was his agenda and not separate statehood.
On being asked why he had repeatedly mentioned separate statehood earlier, Mr. Nadahalli said that the people of north Karnatka were fed up with promises of development. “I had only said that if comprehensive development of north Karnataka does not take place, then seeking separate statehood would become inevitable,” he said.
He clarified that several of the legislators including leaders like Umesh Katti had supported the demand for separate statehood mainly because of lack of development. Mr. Nadahalli said that he had statistics to prove the less funding for NK region. “I would urge the state government to issue a white paper on the allocations made towards the development of southern and northern parts of Karnataka,” he said.
Terming the 10-day legislature session at Belagavi as an eye-wash, Mr. Patil wanted the session to be held for at least 30 days. “We want meaningful deliberations on NK issues and not political discussions,” he said.
Earlier interacting with Mr. Nadahalli, Mr. Puttappa blamed politicians from the region for the lack of development.
