Congress, BJP betrayed Dalits: Kumaraswamy

JDS leader and former Karnataka

Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy today alleged that Congress and

BJP governments had betrayed dalits and were responsible for

their poor plight even after 65 years of independence. Congress had "systematically thrown" dalit leaders like

Ramvilas Paswan, he said at a Dalit Convention organised by

JDS at Tumkur, some 70 kms away from here. He also accused BJP for reducing its former national

president Bangaru Laxman a political non-entity after he was

accused of receiving a kickback of Rs 2 lakh as party fund. However, the BJP has not taken any serious action against

BJP strong man B S Yeddyurappa even after facing corruption

charges, Kumaraswamy alleged. Launching a tirade against BJP government in the state,

Kumaraswamy said the decision to waive crops loans up to a

maximum of Rs 25,000 was not taken due to the concern for

farmers, but due to the 'rising popularity' of JDS among

farmers. He announced launching of an agitation demanding

implementation of job reservation for SC and ST communities in

private sector. Kumaraswamy said the reservation in jobs guaranteed in

Indian constitution for SC and ST communities is being eroded

due to depleting job opportunities in government organizations

in the era of privatization and globalization.