Joined hands with BJP to destroy Congress, says H D Deve Gowda

Bengaluru: JD(S) supremo H D Deve Gowda said Friday that his party has joined hands with the BJP expressly to "destroy" the Congress in Karnataka.

Gowda, a former prime minister, told a news conference that he is confident about the BJP-JD(S) alliance winning all 28 seats from Karnataka in the Lok Sabha polls. He said the "Congress era" would end after the Lok Sabha polls.

“We want to defeat the Congress. We're determined to see that the Congress in Karnataka is destroyed. The era of Congress will end after the Lok Sabha polls with the victory of the BJP-JD(S) alliance,” Gowda said.

Reacting to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah's claim that the Congress would win 20 Lok Sabha seats in the state, Gowda said, "Siddaramaiah is dreaming. But under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, we will ensure that the Congress is destroyed and the BJP-JD(S) alliance will garner exceptional support from the people of Karnataka."

Supporting the BJP's fight against the Congress government in Karnataka where a 31-year-old case was reopened to arrest a man who was accused of violence during the Ram Mandir agitation, Gowda termed it "vendetta". "As an NDA partner, we have extended our support to the BJP in its fight against the Congress on the karsevak's arrest," he said.

Gowda also said that there was no decision yet on the sharing of seats between the BJP and JD(S) for the Lok Sabha polls. He said the process will be finalised after the Sankranti festival.

Alleging that the Congress government had 'transferred' funds from Karnataka to finance the party's elections in five states, Gowda openly accused Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar, the Karnataka Congress president, stating that he was the facilitator of the fund transfer. "How much money was transported? Who carried it? Whose resources were they? The Election Commission possesses evidence," he claimed.

Take over NICE, HDD urges CM

Gowda on Friday released a letter he wrote to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah in October urging the government to take over the Bengaluru-Mysuru Infrastructure Corridor (NICE) project. Gowda said not doing so would be a "black spot" in Siddaramaiah's political career. "The state government must take back 13,404 acres of farmers' land in possession of the company," Gowda said, adding that no action has been taken despite his letter and phone call to the CM. "I really don't know what's stopping him," he said.