BENGALURU: Former Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda kicked up a storm on Friday after he claimed that mid-term polls to the Assembly were imminent, given the political scenario in the state. Despite the JDS supremo backtracking on his statement later, the damage had already been done. It took a battalion of Congress leaders and Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy himself to douse the fire, but not before the BJP had seized the opportunity to mock the “confusion” within the coalition.
Gowda soon accused the media of twisting his words, but his claim of mid-term polls and differences with the Congress was caught on tape. “High command (Congress’) should have first discussed with everybody and then approached us.
But they came suddenly. Why did they do it? Because Yeddyurappa had taken oath and they didn’t want BJP to form the government.
They forced my son to become the CM,” Deve Gowda said even as he claimed that given the prevailing political situation in the state, he had no doubts that there would be mid-term polls. Soon after his statement set political circles abuzz, the Congress reiterated its commitment to the coalition.
Deve Gowda backtracks on statement
“As far as the Congress is concerned, we have committed to support this government for five years and there is no change. There will be no attempts by us to destabilise this government. We are in very good terms with the Chief Minister and all decisions are being taken in joint consultation,” said KPCC president Dinesh Gundu Rao.
Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy went a step ahead and claimed that his father was referring to local body polls, the same lines which were reiterated by Gowda hours later when he backtracked on his statement. “He was only explaining how the coalition government came to be. I am categorically clarifying now that the polls he was referring to were local body polls. There is no instability and this government will continue for four more years,” Kumaraswamy, who is on his Grama Vastavya, said.
The BJP, however, refused to take kindly to the statements. While senior leaders like K S Eshwarappa chose to ask the coalition to dissolve the government and go home if they can’t work together, state president B S Yeddyurappa mocked the alleged confusion among the coalition partners. “Congress and JDS are a bundle of confusion. We will not allow mid-term polls at any cost. We are 105 in number. If they can’t govern, then let them go home and we will form the government,” Yeddyurappa said.