Daijiworld Media Network - Davanagere (SP)

Davanagere, Apr 5: Political secretary to the chief minister, Renukacharya, has claimed that 65 BJP MLAs have signed a petition seeking the expulsion of rebel MLA, Basanagouda Patil Yatnal. He also said in an ironic ridicule that Yatnal has been rewarding Yediyurappa well for bringing him back into the party.

Speaking to media persons on Sunday, he felt that Yatnal has been behaving like a Congress agent and advised him to mend his ways. He also said that being the party vice president, B Y Vijayendra, has been moving around the state to strengthen the party's organization and Yatnal was wrong in making allegations against him.

On the issue of the minister, Eshwarappa, writing to the governor against the chief minister, he said that Eshwarappa, Ananth Kumar etc were the ones who built the party in Karnataka. He said that Eshwarappa should not have involved the governor in a matter that should have been sorted out within the four walls. He said that this has given the Congress something to criticize the BJP. He however, added that there is no misunderstanding between the CM and Eshwarappa and that the national leadership has been kept abreast of the matter and the issue would be sorted out without any fuss.

Renukacharya also said that the rice being issued under the 'Anna Bhagya' scheme which the former chief minister Siddaramaiah, claims to be an achievement of the Congress, is in fact a gift of the BJP government. He said that this decision was taken when D N Jeevaraj was the food and civil supplies minister when the BJP government was in power before the assembly election. He said that Siddaramaiah, after his government rose to power, had just signed the file.

In the meantime, speaking at Vijayapura, Basanagouda Yatnal said that he has nothing to learn from those who became MLC and minister by blackmailing the concerned on the basis of a CD.