CM Siddaramaiah hints of commotion within BJP, meets farmers' delegation in Mysuru

A group of farmers' leaders, led by Kurbur Shanthakumar, the President of the State Federation of Farmers' Organizations and the Sugarcane Growers Association, met Chief Minister Siddaramaiah at his residence in Sharadadevinagar, Mysuru, on Saturday. During the meeting, they handed over a memorandum, urging the Chief Minister to address various demands vital to the farming community.

The farmers' leaders expressed their concerns about the agricultural laws introduced by the BJP-led Union Government, branding them as 'anti-farmer' policies. They urged CM Siddaramaiah not to implement these policies in the state. Additionally, the delegation called for the release of the pending Fair Remuneration Price (FRP) of Rs 150 per tonne for sugarcane from the previous year and appealed for a further increase in the FRP for sugarcane.

Later, talking politics, Siddaramaiah hinted at internal discord within the BJP concerning the appointments of R Ashok as the leader of the opposition in the Karnataka Legislative Assembly and B Y Vijayendra as the State President of BJP. Addressing the media in Mysuru on Saturday, he questioned the abrupt departure of Ramesh Jarkiholi, Aravinda Ballal, and Basanagouda Patil Yatnal from the BJP legislative party meeting after the announcement of Ashok's selection by the BJP High Command. "Wait and watch about what will happen in BJP soon," said CM Siddaramaiah.

Responding to R Ashok's statement about fighting the alleged corrupt Congress government and terming the Congress-led state government as corrupt, CM Siddaramaiah asserted that he would address these concerns during the upcoming assembly session.

Siddaramaiah also questioned the moral standing of H D Kumaraswamy, who the CM claimed had admitted to obtaining electricity illegally for his residence during Diwali and paid a fine. He pointed out that there was an FIR in the case, emphasizing that an offence is an offence, regardless of its size.

Regarding recent allegations made by H D Kumaraswamy, Siddaramaiah stated, "People have taught them a lesson," referring to the results of the Karnataka Legislative Assembly election. "People have taught them a lesson. BJP won just 66 seats and JD(S) stooped from 38 seats to 19 seats in the election. They will have to sit in the opposition for five years. People have blessed us and given us 136 seats in the Assembly election. Our focus is to ensure there is peace in the state, no hate politics and mainly on implementing all our promises. We are implementing all our guarantee schemes. BJP and JD(S) leaders who had dreamed of forming a coalition government and coming to power are desperate, and hence they are making false allegations out of jealousy and hatred," the CM said.

In response to Kumaraswamy's allegations on Twitter and BJP's Pay CM campaign against Congress, Siddaramaiah questioned the credibility of these claims and challenged Kumaraswamy to prove them. He also raised doubts about the authenticity of Kumaraswamy's claims regarding a pen drive, urging him to disclose the names of those who allegedly requested him not to release it.

Addressing recent controversies surrounding allegations about Yathindra and CSR fund utilization, Siddaramaiah clarified that the document released by Congress was signed by Mysuru taluk BEO Vivekananda. He emphasized that Yathindra's remarks in the conversation were not about the Vivekananda who had been transferred to VVPuram police station, stating that the station is in Chamaraja constituency, not Varuna.

Finally, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah mentioned that discussions about the Mysuru City Corporation elections would be on the agenda, as the term of corporators has ended.