Yeddy Receives Hero’s Welcome in Bangalore, Swears by Development Mantra
From Our Special Correspondent
Daijiworld Media Network - Bangalore
Bangalore, Nov 24: A visibly relieved Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa, who managed to hold on to his chair and stay in power despite being asked by the BJP national high command to resign over the spate of allegations of nepotism, favouritism and other irregularities in various land allotments, denotifications and other scams, reached Bangalore to a hero’s welcome on Wednesday evening.
Enthusiastic BJP workers and leaders, led by former minister and state planning board’s deputy chairman Ramachandra Gowda, excise minister M P Renukacharya, MLA Nandish Reddy and others, accompanied by traditional bands and blowing of trumpets and conches extended a boisterous welcome to the chief minister as if he was returning to the city after conquering a war for retaining his power.
Yeddyurappa, who landed at the old HAL airport in the city in the evening, profusely thanked the BJP national leadership for reposing their confidence in him and offering him an opportunity to continue to serve the people of Karnataka for the remaining two and half years.
"Development, Development and Development will be the mantra of my government. I will continue to work for the development of the state," he declared.
He asserted that his immediate priority was to win the ensuing taluk and zilla panchayat polls in the State.
"I will continue the development programmes and pro-people welfare schemes. I will be touring the state along with State BJP president K S Eshwarappa, home and transport minister R Ashok and all other ministers and MLAs. All of us will unitedly work for the success of the BJP in the coming local body elections," he said.
The chief minister was under pressure not only from the opposition Congress and JD(S) parties but also leaders from other parties and was finally asked by the BJP national president Nitin Gadkari and others after the land scams involving the Yeddyurappa regime reached alarming proportions. However, Yeddyurappa tried his best to resist the mounting demand for his resignation even as BJP opposition leader in the Lok Sabha Sushma Swaraj and her counterpart in the Rajya Sabha Arun Jaitely, senior party leader Venkaiah Naidu and former Deputy Prime Minister L K Advani to put in his papers.
The BJP had asked Yeddyurappa to quit following the serious charges of land scam, nepotism, favouritism and other irregularities in view of the party’s campaign to force the ruling Congress-led UPA regime to sack the Maharashtra chief minister Ashok Chavan in the Adarsh housing society scam, Suresh Kalmadi over the Commonwealth Games scam and DMK’s Telecommunications Minister A Raja over the 2G spectrum scam in order to demonstrate that it was serious about its fight against corruption.
Yeddyurappa had reportedly threatened to bring down the government in the state if he was forced to quit even as the BJP high command offered him the opportunity of naming his successor. He had even prevailed upon most of the seers of the Lingayat Mutts to rally round him and warn the BJP national leadership of their resistance to any moves to dethrone a chief minister belonging to the community.
A jubiliant Chief Minister boasted that the opposition Congress and JD(S) parties had resorted to leveling false and baseless allegations against him out of jealousy over his government’s spectacular performance during the last two and half years to tarnish his image.
"I will give a befitting reply to the Congress and JD(S) leaders and expose all the scams during their regime in the past. Instead of indulging in these malicious tactics, let the opposition parties behave responsibly and cooperate with the government in carrying out its developmental agenda and programmes," he said asserting that he would prove that the people supported the government.
Asked about the remarks by Tourism and Infrastrcture Development Minister G Janaradhana Reddy at the Kanaka Jayanti celebrations criticising the Lingayat Mutt swamijis for supporting the chief minister and behaving as if they were representing a caste and community and the demand that the swamijis should support honest and upright persons, the chief minister said he would not like to react to such issues without ascertaining facts.
"My focus and priority is only to work for the development of the state and ensure that the BJP secured a thumping majority in the coming taluk and zilla panchayat polls," he said pointing out that his government had won the second place among all states, behind BJP-ruled Gujarat, in the implementation of the 20-point economic programme of the Centre and had also been rated as one of the best state for its financial management.
The Chief Minister congratulated Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar and deputy chief minister Sushil Kumar on the JD(U)-BJP combine’s spectacular victory in the Bihar assembly polls. "It is a lesson for the Congress party," he said declaring that the BJP would prove its strength in Karnataka’s local body elections too.
Parameshwar attacks BJP for 'double-standards'
Meanwhile, KPCC President Dr G Parameshwar, at a separate news conference in Bangalore, lambasted the BJP central high command for allowing Yeddyurappa to continue in power flouting all norms of morality, decency and probity in public life while claiming to be a party with a difference and preaching to others about probity in public life.
If leaders of the stature of L K Advani, Sushma Swaraj, A.run Jaitely or the RSS bosses could not force Yeddyurappa to quit when scams after scams had proved his nepotism, favouritism and other irregularities in various land deals, Dr Parameshwar said the BJP had lost its moral authority and lost control over its leaders.
"Can Swaraj and Jaitley any longer sit in parliament, when they have failed to replace a Chief Minister who had admitted to committing illegal allotment of sites and de notifying lands and nepotism?," he asked and pointed out that Congress President Sonia Gandhi saw that Ashok Chavan and A Raja resigned and Suresh Kalmadi was removed from his post.
Ridiculing Yeddyurappa`s remarks on instituting a judicial inquiry into the charges faced by him and his family members, the KPCC president said that this had become redundant when the Lokayukta Santhosh Hegde had already received complaints into 78 specific cases and had already promised to start the investigation.
"Either the Lokayukta should be allowed to investigate or the charges must be referred to the CBI if the people should have any credibility in the government," he said warning that the Congress party would intensify its agitation in all the districts and would not keep quiet until Yeddyurappa was removed.
He also said that the party was thinking of initiating prosecution against the Chief Minister. "This is one of the demands made in our memorandum before the Governor H R Bhardwaj," he said disclosing that the KPCC too had a lot of incriminating documents against the BJP leaders and would release them.
He denied any bonhomie between the BJP and his party as alleged by the former Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy and asked not to find fault with the courteous behaviour of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in allowing Yeddyurappa to travel in his aircraft.
"Any talk of alliance with the JD(S) in the zilla and taluk panchayat elections, had to be decided by the party high command. However, we have no problem in joining hands with other like-minded secular parties on common issues affecting the nation or the state," he claimed.