BENGALURU: Opposition parties have blamed the Congress government of sacrificing the interests of Karnataka to strengthen the opposition alliance -- I.N.D.I.A -- and to please its ally Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) by releasing Cauvery water to Tamil Nadu. The BJP and Janata Dal (Secular) took the Congress to task, saying that the party is prioritising political gains over the interest of farmers.
Former CM and BJP leader Basavaraj Bommai told reporters on Thursday that it is apparent that political interest is the reason behind the release of Cauvery water to the neighbouring state. The national opposition parties floated I.N.D.I.A recently and the DMK is part of it.
“Never in the history of Karnataka has any government yielded to Tamil Nadu’s demand without first trying to safeguard the interests of the state. To please its ally, the DMK, the Congress government is releasing water soon after the Tamil Nadu government approached the Supreme Court. It is clear that the Congress has sacrificed the interests of farmers with an eye to its political prospects in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections,”
Bommai said. JDS leader HD Kumaraswamy felt that Congress was using the Cauvery issue to strengthen the opposition alliance and stated that the state government was kneeling before TN, keeping in mind the upcoming parliamentary polls. He expressed anger that the Congress had damaged the self-esteem of Kannadigas by doing so.
Slamming the state Congress government for releasing Cauvery water, Kumaraswamy urged Chief Minister Siddaramaiah to stop releasing water to the neighbouring state immediately. He has also demanded that the CM call an all-party meeting and stress on following the distress formula.
Stating that the Congress government is not taking opposition parties into confidence in such crucial issues, the former CM urged the government to clarify why it hastened to release water to the neighbouring state without first taking steps to convince the Supreme Court or consulting legal experts and opposition leaders.
Attacking Water Resources Minister DK Shivakumar for his statements that the decision to release Cauvery water lies with the Centre and that the farmers can go to court on this matter, the JDS legislative party leader asked whether Shivakumar was minister of Karnataka or Tamil Nadu. “If the Centre has the keys to Cauvery water, what is his (Shivakumar) role in it? Now are the keys with Stalin (Tamil Nadu CM) or Sonia Gandhi?” he said.