CM Siddaramaiah collected Rs 300 cr from ministers to fund Bihar polls, alleges BJP’s Sriramulu
Bengaluru/Chitradurga (PTI): Senior BJP leader B Sriramulu on Wednesday accused Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah of collecting Rs 300 crore from state ministers to fund the Congress party's campaign in the Bihar Assembly polls, allegedly to "save his chair".
He claimed that the amount was raised during a recent dinner meeting hosted by the chief minister for his cabinet colleagues.
"Chief Minister Siddaramaiah's chair is probably shaking. He is going to Delhi on November 15. He is making efforts to save his chair. We will have to see what revolution happens after November 15," he told reporters in Chitradurga.
There are speculations about a change in leadership when the Congress government completes half its five-year term next month, which some are calling a 'November revolution'.
"Collections have started from ministers as the Bihar polls have been announced. The CM wants to send a good amount of funds (to the party) for the Bihar polls through this collection, in order to save his chair," he claimed.
"For the sake of the Bihar polls, Ministers were called for dinner and Rs 300 crore was collected from them by Siddaramaiah. Congress is not in power in most states, so by collecting Rs 300 crore from Karnataka, Siddaramaiah has become a 'Kalpavruksha' and 'Kamadhenu' (wish-fulfilling divine tree and cow) for the Congress," he added.
Bihar will vote in two phases on November 6 and 11, and counting of votes will be held on November 14.
Hitting back, Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar took a swipe at Sriramulu, saying the funds the BJP leader had given to the Congress were being sent for the Bihar elections. "Sriramulu has given funds to the Congress party; we have sent the same funds (for the Bihar polls)," he quipped while speaking to media in Bengaluru.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
BJP to fight Assam polls on twin planks of development, secure state
Guwahati (PTI): In a bid to win the Assam Assembly elections for the third time in a row, Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Friday advised the state BJP brass to fight on twin planks: development and a secure state.
Shah, who wound up a two-day visit to Assam, held a nearly two-hour-long meeting with senior leaders of the BJP state unit at the party headquarters here, with a focus on discussing strategy for the state elections, expected in March-April.
Briefing reporters after the closed-door meeting, BJP Assam president Dilip Saikia said, "Development and a secure Assam will be our twin electoral planks."
He also said that Shah, known for his expertise in electoral politics, has offered valuable suggestions, and based on it, an action plan to retain power in the state will be formulated soon.
“Discussions were held in detail on our organisational and political calendars. Shah ji offered some very valuable suggestions, and we will implement those at the earliest…We will share more details on the action plan soon,” Saikia said.
He further said that the Union minister exhorted the state party leadership to ensure that not only do they secure a ‘massive landslide victory’ but also bag more seats than in the previous election.
The BJP currently leads a coalition government in Assam with the Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) and United People's Party Liberal (UPPL), while the Bodoland People's Front (BPF) has also extended support.
In the 126-member Assembly, the BJP now has 64 legislators, while its allies AGP, UPPL and BPF have nine, seven and three memnbers, respectively. In the opposition camp, the Congress’ strength is 26, while AIUDF has 15 members and CPI(M) one. There is an Independent legislator also, belonging to Raijor Dal.
Saikia said that the party will continue to contest the state polls in coalition with its NDA allies, which was also favoured by Shah.
Dismissing reports of chinks in the ruling coalition, the Lok Sabha MP said, “As far as the NDA is concerned, we are united in Assam. There could be discussions about some issues on individual party forums.”
The saffron party has maintained that its alliance with the regional parties will continue, and formalities like seat-sharing arrangements are being worked out.
Shah, who was on his second visit to the state within a month, attended two other events in Dibrugarh and Dheamji earlier in the day. He left for West Bengal after the meeting at the Guwahati state party headquarters.
