‘Congress govt's guarantees have snatched legislators’ rights'

The development activities in the state have come to a standstill. The legislators are not getting grants to take up work in their constituencies, the JD(S) chief said

The guarantee schemes implemented by the Congress government have snatched the legislators’ rights for constituency development funds, prompting the ruling party MLAs to rebel against their own government, former prime minister and JD(S) supremo H D Deve Gowda said on Friday.

The development activities in the state have come to a standstill. The legislators are not getting grants to take up work in their constituencies. Because of which they are facing the wrath of constituents. Lack of funds have put the MLAs in a spot. Hence, a few Congress MLAs have rebelled against their own government, Deve Gowda told reporters in Devadurga, Raichur district.

Gowda accused the Congress of indulging in appeasement politics.

“The Congress government is playing vote bank politics with its appeasement policies. It was me who provided 4% reservation to Muslims. It (the Congress) has no moral right to talk about secularism. The Congress has lost people’s faith in all the three party-ruled states - Karnataka, Himachal Pradesh and Telangana, he charged.

‘Dealers’ network’

Meanwhile, Gowda’s grandson and JD(S) youth wing state president Nikhil Kumaraswamy said on Friday that a ‘dealers’ network, comprising several ministers, is at work in the state government.

Launching a scathing attack on the Congress government, Nikhil said, “The eligible beneficiaries of the state government schemes have to depend on the brokers to get enrolled and to enjoy the benefits. The Congress leaders and legislators themselves have expressed their displeasure against the functioning of their party government. Even gram panchayats get the houses sanctioned through the dealers/brokers,” he alleged.