Mocking BJP State president B.Y. Vijayendra for his allegations on the Chief Minister, Large and Medium Industries Minister M.B. Patil said that Mr. Vijayendra himself was on shaky ground as BJP leaders like Basanagouda Yatnal, Ramesh Jarkiholi, R. Ashok and Basavaraj Bommai had not accepted his leadership.
Speaking to presspersons in Belagavi on Friday, Mr. Patil said that they were sure that Chief Minister Siddaramaiah had no role in the MUDA scam and the court would also set aside the case. “Naturally it will be big embarrassment to BJP and Siddaramaiah will emerge as powerful leader”, he said.
The Minister said that BJP and RSS agenda was to use the leaders from the same community to snub good leaders of the same community. Accordingly now a Dalit leader was being pitted against Dalit leader Mallikarjun Kharge. Earlier BJP used the same ploy to dethrone former Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa by pitting other Lingayat leaders within the party against him, he said.
Clarifying that he had not made disparaging remarks against the Leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Council Chalavadi Narayanaswamy, he said that as Mr. Narayanaswamy had taken 8029 sq.mtrs of land near Mysuru for a software development firm and subsequently constructed a shed there. “Given the background I termed ‘shed giraki’ (shed customer). There is nothing more to it,” he said.
On whether he had withdrawn himself from the Lingayat movement after he and Shamanur Shivashankarappa became relatives through a marriage, Mr. Patil categorically ruled it out. “Our belief and ideology is ours and their belief is bit different. Ultimately one day Veerashaiva Mahasabha itself will approve Lingayat religion,” he said.
