”I am a non-vegetarian and it’s my food practice. What’s wrong with this?” leader of the Opposition Siddaramaiah asked BJP leaders here on Sunday.
On criticism that he consumed non-vegetarian food and went to a temple during his recent visit to Madikeri, he told reporters,“I had lunch at a guest house in Madikeri. I visited the temple in the evening. Has God prescribed any specific food? People consume meat during the night and visit temples the next morning. Why shouldn’t we visit a temple in the evening after having meat for lunch?”
He alleged that the BJP leaders were trying to find fault with his every action. They projected a man who hurled eggs at his car in Madikeri as a Congressman. He was an RSS activist. It was a government-sponsored attack.
“The BJP leaders oppose Tipu Sultan. Should I reveal what former chief minister B S Yediyurappa and Jagadish Shettar speak about Tipu Sultan? Why didn’t the BJP leaders protest then? Yediyurappa had worn a Tipu turban and had even held a sword. What were K G Bopaiah, Pralhad Joshi doing then?” he sought to know.
Messages were doing the rounds in social media about Siddaramaiah entering Basaveshwara temple in Kodlipet (Kodagu district), after having non-vegetarian food in the lunch.
However, former MLC Veena Acchaiah said “it is true that there was chicken curry. But, Siddaramaiah had Coorg special ‘kanile curry’ (bamboo shoot) and ‘akki roti.’ He did not have non vegetarian food.”