BENGALURU: Hitting out at senior BJP leader Basanagouda Patil Yatnal, who had accused the chief minister of sharing dais with Maulvi Tanveer Hashmi and calling the latter an ISIS sympathizer, Siddaramaiah on Friday said Yatnal’s main target is Prime Minister Narendra Modi and posted a photo of Hashmi with Modi.
Commenting on X, Siddaramiah said, “Despite BJP MLA Basanagouda Patil Yatnal using a photo of me with Maulvi Tanveer Hashmi to levy accusations against me, it is slowly becoming evident that his real target is Prime Minister Modi.”
He said, “Angered and frustrated after losing the positions of the state BJP president and the Leader of the Opposition, Yatnal appears to have made these allegations against me with the actual intent of taking revenge against PM Modi and Union Minister Amit Shah.”
He said, “After Yatnal’s allegation against me, details of PM Narendra Modi’s connection with Maulvi will also come to light, which Yatnal was undoubtedly aware of. The nature of these accusations suggests an attempt to create embarrassment for the PM and other BJP leaders. I have openly acknowledged my friendly relationship with Maulvi Hashmi. Maulvi Hashmi himself has challenged the Union Government to investigate the allegations against him. Now, PM Modi must respond to the accusations against him.”
The CM also said, “Should there be any truth to the claims about Maulvi Tanveer Hashmi’s connections with ISIS, it’s imperative for the PM to order a thorough investigation and disclose any related details. If this is not done, then action must be taken against Yatnal for making such false accusations.”
‘Yatnal made allegation against BSY too’
Siddaramaiah also said this is not the first time that Yatnal has made such accusations. “He has previously made accusations against former Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa and his children. He has even made a serious allegation that to become the Chief Minister in BJP, one needs to pay Rs 2,000 crore to the party’s high command. What power lies behind Yatnal’s ability to openly make accusations against senior leaders of his own party?”
It’s Pay DCM now, taunts Yatnal
Belagavi: BJP MLA Basanagouda Patil Yatnal targeted Congress leaders on Friday by returning their pre-election ‘Pay CM’ jibe with a ‘Pay DCM’ taunt over the delay in clearing pending bills of contractors who have completed their works. During zero hour, Yatnal raised the issue and said bills of contractors who have completed the works in departments like PWD, Rural Development, Minor Irrigation and others have been pending for a long time. “Because of this, the contractors are in a bad situation. Even the high court has directed the State Government to release the pending bills. But still, the government has not been kind enough to do so. Many contractors have attempted suicide,” he said. “They are getting notices for unpaid GST. Since their bills are not cleared they are in big trouble,” he said. Reminding how Congress used to taunt the BJP government with Pay CM jibe, he said, “ You alleged us of 40 percent commission. This is 80 percent commission. This is Pay DCM,” he said. Congress members objected to his statement, and as arguments continued, Speaker UT Khader put an end to it.