Congress leader Siddaramaiah calls Karnataka CM Bommai puppy before PM
Ballari (PTI): Leader of Opposition in the Karnataka Assembly Siddaramaiah on Wednesday called Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai a puppy before Prime Minister Narendra Modi for alleged failure to bring Rs 5,495 crore into the State as was recommended by the 15th Finance Commission.
Hitting back, Chief Minister Bommai said Siddaramaiah's statement mirrors his personality. Just like a faithful dog, he is loyal to the people of the State.
Bommai said Modi is like a 'kamadhenu' (wish-fulfilling cow) who gave many projects to Karnataka, which never happened since independence.
Addressing a public meeting today, Siddaramaiah challenged Bommai to show some courage.
"Basavaraj Bommai, you are like a puppy in front of Narendra Modi. You tremble before him," the Congress leader remarked.
The former Chief Minister pointed out that the 15th Finance Commission in its interim report recommended the Rs 5,495 crore as a special allowance for Karnataka.
"But our Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitaramam, a Rajya Sabha member from Karnataka, wrote to the Finance Commission chairperson N K Singh that it is not possible for us to give the Rs 5,495 crore. She asked the chairperson to drop the issue," Siddaramaiah claimed.
"Karnataka sent 25 BJP MPs to the Lok Sabha. You (Bommai) came to power through Operation Lotus' in Karnataka. If you have guts and courage, then get Rs 5,495 crore from the Centre," the Congress said to the Chief Minister.
Reacting to that, Bommai said the people would give a befitting reply to the Leader of Opposition in the Assembly election which is about four months away.
"The statement shows the personality of the Congress leader," Bommai told reporters in Ballari .
He added that just like dog, which is a faithful animal, he would also remain faithful.
"I have not divided society like Siddaramaiah did. We have given happiness unlike Congress which gave misfortune," the Chief Minister said.
"Narendra Modi gave 6,000 km of highway to Karnataka which is a record in the post-independence period. He gave approval also to the Bengaluru-Mysuru highway project, Mangaluru-Karwar ports and Kalasa-Bandura project," Bommai told reporters.
He said that in the coming days, the Upper Krishna project would be declared as a national project and grants would be released. The Smart City project has been sanctioned for all major cities. This was not the case during the UPA regime. All the important projects have been given by Modi, he said
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Body of UP girl who fell in Meghalaya waterfall recovered
Shillong (PTI): The body of a 15-year-old girl from Uttar Pradesh who fell into a waterfall in Meghalaya's Sohra area while trying to take snaps a day ago was recovered on Thursday morning, officials said.
The girl had gone missing on Wednesday after she reportedly slipped while trying to take photographs and fell into one of the deep natural pools at the Wei Sawdong Falls, they said.
Search operations were conducted through Wednesday but were called off after sunset.
Around 7.30 am on Thursday, locals spotted the body stuck between rocks near the waterfall, officials said. Following this, a joint team of Fire and Emergency Services and the Sohra Police recovered the body around 10 am.
"Local village volunteers resumed the search early this morning and spotted the body, following which we recovered the body," a senior official told PTI.
The body has been sent for post-mortem, he added.
