JOIN USCong high command summons Siddaramaiah, Shivakumar to discuss RS polls
Leader of Opposition in Legislative Assembly Siddaramaiah said on Friday that the party high command has summoned him and KPCC president D K Shivakumar to discuss fielding candidates for ongoing polls to Legislative Council and Rajya Sabha and they will leave for New Delhi on Saturday (May 21).
Speaking to reporters at Kalaburagi Airport here on Friday, he stated that whether the party should field candidates for Rajya Sabha to reap the benefits of additional votes will come up for discussion in Delhi.
To a query, Siddaramaiah said that he had told removing the lesson of Bhagat Singh from the syllabus and including the speech of RSS founder Keshav Baliram Hedgewar in the syllabus are wrong. For this, BJP leaders call him a traitor. Who is a traitor whether those who dropped Bhagat Singh's lesson or those who re-included his lesson? he asked.
"There was no need to include Hedgewar's speech in the syllabus. He is being honoured for establishing the RSS. Introducing Hedgewar to children by dropping those who sacrifice their lives is treason", the ex-CM retorted.
The people will decide whether they want Bhagat Singh who sacrificed for the nation or those who establish RSS. The government should teach the aspirations of the Constitution but not the RSS ideology, he advised.
The BJP's argument is that the country was in the hands of leftists all these years and will henceforth be in the hands of right wings. The nation is more important than anything, Siddaramaiah replied to a question.
Terming a tweet made by BJP that Siddaramaiah is anti-Dalits, as political tactics, the former chief minister challenged did the BJP do even a single work which he did for the scheduled castes and tribes. It is Siddaramaiah who provided reservation to the SC/ST in awarding the contract. During his stint as chief minister, he has spent about Rs 88,000 crore for the welfare of the SC/ST. During the BJP government, Rs 22,000 crore has been spent. Let them publish a white paper, he told.
Govt responsible
The ex-CM held the government responsible for what Bengalureans are facing now due to the incessant rainfall. Removing encroachment of stormwater drains and removing silt from drains are the only remedy to facilitate the flow of water. The government should have prepared early to prevent flooding of areas. Now, it is announcing compensation.
When Yediyurappa was chief minister, he stated that he would change the picture of Bengaluru. Unfortunately, the state capital was ruined further. Former chief minister H D Kumaraswamy expanded Bengaluru by including 110 villages into BBMP. But, no facilities were provided. Due to this, the people are facing problems now, he added.