Mounesh Vishwakarma
Daijiworld Media Network – Bantwal
Bantwal, July 31: In a blistering critique of the BJP, former minister B Ramanath Rai on Thursday alleged that the party is ‘misleading the public with false promises and religious propaganda’ to hold on to power.
Speaking at a public awareness rally organised by the Bantwal and Panemangalore Block Congress Committees and B Moodu Congress, held at B C Road, Rai said, “It was the Congress that launched several people-centric schemes like land ownership rights and title deeds. But the BJP thrives on falsehoods, misleading people in the name of religion to grab power.”
Rai accused the BJP of illegally issuing title deeds during elections, cancelling BPL cards, and pushing anti-poor policies. “Congress has a legacy of launching debt-relief schemes. Governments don’t go bankrupt helping the poor they collapse when they waive loans for big industrialists. That’s the real threat to the economy,” he warned.
'BJP thrives on lies and fear'
Senior advocate M G Hegde echoed similar sentiments, stating: “The BJP was born from falsehood. It built its base on Hindutva lies. Its leaders introduced laws that harm Hindus more than help them.”
He accused the BJP of weaponising communalism and criminalizing youth: “It’s the Sangh Parivar that pushed Hindu youth toward crime. Congress has never encouraged criminal activity. But hand someone like Prabhakar Bhat a mic, and the first thing he’ll do is hurl abuses at Ramanath Rai and the Congress.”
He added that the coastal belt has seen relative calm only after Siddaramaiah’s government returned to power, saying: “The BJP’s communal business has been shut. Their backdoor illegal dealings are also blocked. There is peace now in the region.”
KPCC spokesperson targets BJP over Puttur controversy
KPCC spokesperson Sudheer Kumar Maroli launched a direct attack on the BJP and Bantwal MLA Rajesh Naik, questioning the silence over a controversial incident in Puttur, where the son of a BJP leader allegedly handed over a child to a Hindu girl before marriage. “What kind of ‘Jihad’ is this?” he asked. “Where is your Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao slogan now?”
He also ridiculed the infighting between two Hindutva outfits in Mangaluru, saying: “The region is not suffering from Hindu-Muslim clashes but from rivalry between two hate-speech organizations.”
'Rajesh Naik is a useless MLA'
Continuing his tirade, Maroli accused MLA Rajesh Naik of failing to hold KDP meetings, skipping illegal-regularization committee sessions, and prioritizing electoral gimmicks over governance. “You won by issuing title deeds overnight. Now, you’re sitting alone in committees creating forged documents. Shouldn’t the public ask questions?”
He further questioned: “You’ve been an MLA for seven years what development can you show? Rising crime? Deepening religious divides? When a murder took place recently, you visited the victim’s house only after checking their religion. Is this your model of leadership?”
Maroli pointed out that most visible development in Bantwal taluk was done during Ramanath Rai’s tenure, including the distribution of over 20,000 title deeds, and challenged the BJP to stop blaming Congress for its own failures.
Large attendance by party leaders
Congress leaders including Ashwanikumar Rai, Pius L Rodrigues, Chandraprakash Tumbe, Abbas Ali, Nawaz Badakabail, Jayanti S Poojari, B R Anchan, I D A Suresh, Subhashchandra Shetty, Vasu Poojari, Sudarshan Jain, Laveena Moras, Sajwan, Vinayakumar Sindhya, Baby Kundar, Sudeep Shetty, Ganesh Poojari, Padmashekar Jain, Sreejeet, Sanjeev Poojari, Venkappa Poojari, municipal councillors, gram panchayat presidents, members, and booth-level leaders were present in large numbers.
Panemangalore Block Congress president Chandrashekar Bhandari welcomed the gathering. Jagadish Kundar delivered the vote of thanks, and Balakrishna Alva Kodaje emceed the programme.