CM waves white flag, regrets ‘inconvenience’ to Nirmala

Calling time-out on the war of words between the state and the Centre over the public spat between Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and Kodagu district-in-charge Minister Sa Ra Mahesh, Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy on Sunday expressed “regret” over the entire episode.

Kumaraswamy, who took to Twitter to call for a truce, said he was “deeply pained at the turn of events”, with regard to Nirmala’s visit to the flood-affected areas in Kodagu district on August 24.

Kumaraswamy, who has sought Rs 2,000-crore financial assistance from the Centre for rebuilding Kodagu, said it was time to “forget and forgive” each other.

“Though the government and district administration followed protocol despite the tough situation in Kodagu, it was unfortunate that the defence minister had to go through certain inconveniences, which we regret. I also spoke to her over the phone. I believe this is the time for all of us to forget differences and forgive each other and join hands for the flood-affected in Kodagu. Let us not colour such incidents and be distracted from our key focus,” he said.

Kumaraswamy was referring to Nirmala Sitharaman’s outburst at Mahesh, and the subsequent rebuttal by the latter and Deputy Chief Minister G Parameshwara.However, upon seeing the row escalating, what with the Ministry of Defence saying that Mahesh’s remark was in bad taste and had “lowered the dignity of the Rajya Sabha”, Kumaraswamy decided to step in.

Appreciating Nirmala for extending her ministry’s support for Kodagu, Kumaraswamy, in the same breath, defended Mahesh for his “tireless” efforts in overseeing the operations on the ground.

Watch: Nirmala Sitharaman in Kodagu