Has the supposed “cold war" between Congress’s Karnataka heavyweights DK Shivakumar and Siddaramaiah reached a new stage with one side approaching the Bharatiya Janata Party and seeking the central government’s help to “do something against" the other camp? In an exclusive interview with News18, union minister Pralhad Joshi hinted at this.
When asked about the alleged fight over the chief minister’s chair and where it could head after the Lok Sabha polls, Joshi said, “Infighting is so much. Siddaramaiah and DKS groups are fighting. Some people want something from the central government against the other group. Siddaramaiah’s people say he will continue, DK Shivakumar says he will become CM. Daal mein kuch kaala hai (something is fishy)," he said.
The minister is eyeing a fifth straight term from the Dharwad Lok Sabha seat in Karnataka and says that his work over the last 20 years will ensure a record election win for him. The date for voting in Dharwad is May 7, which is the third phase of the ongoing general elections.
“UPA used to approve projects and give very small amounts. But under PM Modi we have got everything. We have expanded the airport and are adding a new terminal now. New bypasses are constructed. We have 24×7 water for Hubballi-Dharwad and the entire district. We have started Vande Bharat, we can reach Bengaluru in 5.5 hours. We want to take people from Dharwad to Bengaluru in 4 hours. The Hubballi-Ankola railway line will be cleared very shortly. We want to see Hubballi developed in a systematic manner," he said.
The ruling Congress has accused Pralhad Joshi and the BJP of politicising the Neha Hiremath murder case. The young college student was brutally stabbed to death inside her college in Hubballi. The BJP has held several protests over the issue ever since. “We did not say anything initially. The chief minister’s reaction was casual and erratic. The father spoke with anger. People said this government may hush up the case and start agitation. We have no role. The entire Dharwad got up and said we won’t tolerate this; it was a spontaneous thing. The father said my daughter was asked to convert. She said she wouldn’t, that’s why she was killed. It was a crisis; we have responded. We don’t need this type of incident to win. We don’t do politics on dead bodies," argued Pralhad Joshi
The BJP MP also lashed out at the Congress government in Karnataka, accusing it of moving all Muslim subsects into the reservation matrix. He said the move was part of the Siddaramaiah government’s appeasement politics. “I have got the NCBC notice copy. The state government has said the entire Muslim community needs to be added to the OBC. Only some communities were in category A. They have said it’s neither a caste nor religion. Muslims claim they are a Dharma. Why should all Muslims be given reservation? Even in the Rameshwaram Cafe blast case, they called it a cylinder blast. They don’t want to say Islamic fundamentalists have done it. They want to support or protect Muslims in such cases," Joshi said.
The Prajwal Revanna sex tape controversy has hit national headlines and many from the Bharatiya Janata Party are worried about any possible impact of it among women voters. Joshi though argued that the row over the now-suspended JD(S) leader will not affect the BJP in any manner. “The Prajwal Revanna video case and the BJP have no connection. They are our partners now. Let there be an investigation. Let them have their investigation. I don’t think it will have an impact on the BJP’s prospects in Karnataka," said Joshi.
Check Lok Sabha Election 2024 Phase 3 Schedule, Key Candidates And Constituencies At News18 Website.
Comments
0 comment