'Liquor' Minister Renu Awaits Green Signal for Yeddy Film

From Our Special Correspodent
Daijiworld Media Network - Bangalore

Bangalore, Jun 17: Karnataka’s Excise Minister M P Renukacharya, who is regularly hitting media limelight on some issue or the other for measures pertaining to his ministry dealing with sale and regulation of liquor and other related issues, is yet to get the green signal for his ambitious pet project of making a film on his boss, Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa.

Renukacharya, who spoke to reporters in Bangalore on Friday, asserted that he was still firm on his decision of producing a film on Yeddyurappa.

The minister, who started off as a loyalist of Yeddyurappa, had become a ''rebel” and was a key leader in the revolt engineered by the all-powerful Bellary mining lords led by Tourism and Infrastructure Minister G Janardhana Reddy.

Soon, he ditched his new found-friends after being inducted by Yeddyurappa into his cabinet. However, he was again the kingpin in the dissident campaign against the Chief Minister last year by the BJP rebel MLAs and independent MLAs and quickly went back to the Yeddyurappa camp before the political farce over the vote of confidence and has since been the most vocal supporter of the Chief Minister.

When the reporters sought to know the details regarding selection of actors, heroines, artistes other supporting characters, the minister said: “I have yet to obtain permission from the Chief Minister on the film project.”

Renukacharya, who was involved in a few controversies earlier, has lauded the performance of the Chief Minister.

Recently, the minister had undertaken a “padayathra” from Bangalore to Yediyur and offered pooja to lord Siddalingeshwar after the victory of the ruling BJP candidate C P Yogeshwar in the Channapatna byelection.

Yogeshwar, had also acted and produced few movies in the Kannada, before making entry into politics through the Congress and got elected from the Channapatna assembly constituency in 2008. He, however, quickly underwent ''Operation Kamala” and resigned his seat to unsuccessfully contest as the BJP candidate from the Bangalore rural lok sabha constituency in 2009 and was defeated against JD(S) state president and former chief minister H D Kumaraswamy. He managed to win in the recent by-election from BJP.

Renukacharya, who is now the most vocal supporter of Yeddyurappa, lashed out Congress and JD(S) leaders for leveling baseless charges against the Chief Minister and said “the Opposition parties are divided and they have been leveling charges to keep their parties united.”

Referring to Congress party's '‘Congress nadige janara balige,’’ a 60-day march of the Congress party to reach the people in the state, the Minister said that it was being organised to keep their flock together and inform the people about the party’s presence in the state.

Taking a dig at the JD(S) leaders, he said that JD(S) was reduced to a “single family” party of former Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda and his sons.

After the JD (S) defeat in Channapatna assembly byelection, the party leaders have been finding it difficult to retain their vote base, Renukacharya said pointing out that the Gowda family was raising baseless allegations to tarnish the image of Yeddyurappa, which he said ''will not be tolerated by the people.”