Shimoga: Oct 3 (DHN) : Former chief minister B S Yeddyurappa on Tuesday publicly declared that he would not associate with Deputy Chief Minister K S Eshwarappa in the future.
“I dissociate myself from him. We can never be together in the future. Eshwarappa is the prime example of people who change their attitude after getting political power. Soon after becoming the deputy chief minister, he indulged in vindictive politics,” said Yeddyurappa, addressing reporters in the Basaveshwara temple at Gandhi Bazaar.
“The postponement of the inauguration ceremony of the Mahatma Gandhi park in Shimoga city is evidence of this. The park was developed at a cost of Rs 10 crore and it was scheduled to be inaugurated today. An invitation card had been prepared for this. But, Eshwarappa has cancelled the event just because I would inaugurate it. This is the height of vindictive politics.”
Yeddyurappa said he had never indulged in personal vendetta while he held public office. He claimed that Eshwarappa was responsible for stalling public works in Shimoga.
“I released ample funds for the development of Shimoga city represented by Eshwarappa, when I was chief minister. I feel disheartened now as all development projects in the city have come to a standstill.”
The BJP government is nearing the end of its term and will face the ballot by May next year, Yeddyurappa said. He reiterated that it was unlikely that he would become the BJP’s state president or Karnataka’s chief minister once again if he continued in the party.
KSE remains calm
Eshwarappa, who was also in the city, chose to remain calm despite Yeddyurappa’s comments on their frayed relationship. “There is no need to respond to all his statements. I am not here only for that purpose,” he told reporters.
He said the Deputy Commissioner and the City Municipal Council president would announce the date for the inauguration of the Mahatma Gandhi park shortly.
Meanwhile, Yeddyurappa said legislators resigning over the Cauvery issue would not solve the problem. Instead, they should meet Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and explain to him the drought situation in Karnataka, he said.