Reddy: They are not Bangladeshis, but N-E people living in B'luru

Home Minister Ramalinga Reddy on Monday dismissed the oft-repeated claim that scores of Bangladeshi immigrants were living in Bengaluru. He said people from the Northeastern states were mistaken to Bangladeshis.

The BJP has, time and again, claimed that the ruling Congress helped get Bangladeshi immigrants included in the electoral rolls ahead of the Assembly elections.

"People from the Northeastern states are confused as Bangladeshis," Reddy told reporters.

"We have special squads to check on illegal immigration. We found only 40-50 illegal Bangladeshi
immigrants all over Karnataka and they have been deported."

He blamed the BJP-led NDA government at the Centre for failing to secure India's borders. "The Centre should tighten checks on immigrants in Assam and other states."

BJP chargesheet

Reddy came down heavily on the BJP's chargesheet, in which the saffron party highlighted failures of the ruling Congress on various fronts. "The charge-sheet should be thrown into the dustbin or a paper scrapyard. Or, it should be used to pack pakodas as Prime Minister Narendra Modi said," Reddy quipped. He was referring to Modi's statement that selling pakodas was equal to employment.

BJP flayed

Training his guns at BJP national president Amit Shah, who has been attacking the state government over farmers' suicides, Reddy said the number of farmers' suicides was highest in the BJP-ruled Maharashtra.

"Shah is shedding crocodile tears over the suicides. Since 2014, as many as 8,651 farmers have ended their lives in Maharashtra and 4,098 in Madhya Pradesh."

Reddy said 3,781 farmers committed suicide in Karnataka owing to consecutive droughts for four years.

Reddy mocked the BJP's 'Mushti Dhanya Sangraha Abhiyana', wherein the party is going door-to-door to collect a handful of rice.

"With what face are they going to farmers' homes? They didn't do anything in the last four years."