TUMAKURU: Union Minister for Heavy Industries and Steel and state JDS president HD Kumaraswamy on Thursday said that the NDA would field a consensus candidate in the forthcoming Hiriyur Assembly bypoll, indicating that the BJP and JDS would jointly decide on the candidate after discussions.
Speaking to reporters after performing the groundbreaking ceremony for the Adarsha Speciality Chemicals Private Limited factory at the Vasanthapura Industrial Complex in Kora hobli of the district, Kumaraswamy said there was considerable demand for a JDS-backed NDA candidate in Hiriyur.
“It is not about whether the candidate belongs to JDS or BJP. A candidate acceptable to all NDA partners will contest. There is considerable demand for a JDS-backed NDA candidate in Hiriyur. In the previous election, JDS lost to Congress by a margin of just 1,200 votes. We will discuss and arrive at a decision. The NDA candidate’s victory is certain,” the former chief minister said.
Kumaraswamy also hit back at Chief Minister DK Shivakumar over his reported remarks on the efforts he had made to become the CM. “I never approached anyone in my party seeking the CM’s post. They themselves came forward and made me the CM.
When I was in office, I waived farmers’ loans and undertook development works. I had provided around Rs 500 crore for the development of each constituency. Why should I be jealous of anyone?” Kumaraswamy said.
Kumaraswamy said the CM’s post was not anyone’s family property and asserted that he had demonstrated his administrative capabilities when he got the opportunity.
He also questioned the State Government’s announcement of Rs 32,000 crore worth of investments in Mangaluru and alleged that it had misled people over the allotment of 100 acres for an EV testing centre in Mandya.
Referring to a recent Lokayukta trap involving a revenue official in Ramanagara, he alleged that corruption had become rampant in the state and took a dig at the CM’s appeal to people to report instances of bribery.
‘Congress leaders don’t understand my portfolio’
Kumaraswamy dismissed Congress leaders’ criticism that he had failed to bring industries and investments to Karnataka as Union Minister, saying they lacked an understanding of the responsibilities of his ministry.
He said attracting investments and facilitating the establishment of industries were primarily the responsibility of the State Government, while the Union Ministry was responsible for framing policies and implementing production-linked incentive schemes.