BENGALURU: Under pressure from the opposition as well as protesting farmers, Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy on Thursday accused the media of being biased and misrepresenting facts. He said he will never address press conferences in the future and will only speak at public functions. “Let the media write what they want to,” an irate CM said after launching a scheme to provide interest-free loans to street vendors.
“The way they are portraying me, I am scared to say anything. Looks like I should constitute an expert committee which will give me suggestions in the morning about what to talk and how to give my speeches. I am in that state now,” the CM said.
About the opposition party, he said there is a section of people who try to find mistakes in whatever welfare work he tries to do. “The sugarcane price problem did not start in my term. It was there for long. I just made an attempt to solve it. The fair and remunerative price is fixed by the Centre and the state government should help farmers get the price from sugarcane factories. But some sugarcane farmers and factory owners have tied up for more sugarcane without bringing it to the government’s notice. In January, sugar prices came down and factory owners did not pay the growers. Was it my fault?’’ he asked.
Talking about the opposition’s attack on his loan waiver scheme, he said, “They are spreading rumours that the loan waiver is bogus. If I do not implement it, I cannot go to farmers. We need not learn from them (BJP).”
Kumaraswamy also attacked the BJP for their taunt that he had become the chief minister with just 38 MLAs. “They might have forgotten that in our (JD(S)-BJP) alliance in 2006, we had less number of seats. They (BJP) have used us in those 20 months. I am aware of what they have done — how they used to send in chits through their personal secretaries and bring pressure on me. We are not here to loot like them,” he said.
He said there was no need for him to learn from Yeddyurappa. “I am not at anyone’s mercy. I will be the CM till I have their (Congress) support. I am not permanent here. There have been 22 CMs in Karnataka,” he said.
On onion prices, he said BJP was blaming him again. “Over 20,000 onion growers are marching towards Mumbai where BJP is in power. Are they (Karnataka BJP) blind? Someone from Bagalkot has tweeted to the Prime Minister about the dip in onion prices. “Will he (PM) credit the money to the farmer’s account through a tweet? I have seen how much money the PM has credited through Jan Dhan scheme,” he added.