H D Kumaraswamy defends alliance with BJP, stings Congress on ‘secularism’

The former chief minister today held a meeting with party legislators, former legislators, former ministers, district presidents and leaders at his Bidadi farm house.

JD(S) legislature party leader and former chief minister H D Kumaraswamy said on Sunday that the party has not done any injustice to the Muslim community and that it will never indulge in appeasing any community for votes in the name of secularism.

The JD(S) patriarch H D Deve Gowda had convened the meeting of party legislators, ex-legislators and district leaders to explain to them about the need for a truck with the BJP.  Several leaders, including the party state president C M Ibrahim, were conspicuous by their absence.  

In his opening remarks, Kumaraswamy said that he had never indulged in vote bank politics and not used any community to meet his political ends. “I know what I have done to you (Muslims) and I will not keep you in good humour like the Congress does with its false assurances,” he said.

Kumaraswamy said “The Congress party makes it (secularism) a big issue. But when it comes to giving tickets, it strictly follows caste yardsticks. How can this be secularism?,” he said.

Today, everyone has openly and unanimously given their approval to the decision on alliance (with the BJP). I want to make it clear to the people of the state that the alliance being done in the state is not for the sake of any power or position. This (alliance) is good for the state. I will fight to protect the state’s interests. If I fail in any of the assurances made here in the next five years, I will retire from public life,” he said.

Meanwhile, party supremo H D Deve Gowda trained his guns on Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar: “Mr D K Shivakumar, I won’t allow you to weaken my party in any manner.” The party is standing on the shoulders of workers and not on leaders. If Shivakumar thinks he can weaken our party by weaning away leaders, he is mistaken, Gowda said.

Citing Pakistan and China as India’s biggest adversaries, Gowda asserted that the JD(S) aligned with the BJP to protect the country’s interests as it needs a stable and strong leader.

‘Muslims firmly with party’

The party’s minority leaders, including JD(S) MLC B M Farooq and JD(S) minority wing state vice president Imtiyaz Rafeeq, said that the Muslim community, but for a few leaders who quit the party recently, stood firmly behind the regional outfit.

“The Congress has never protected Muslims, but JD(S) time and again proved that it stands with them. This is a political plot hatched by Congress to target JD(S), by terming it as anti-Muslim,” Rafeeq said.