Karnataka BJP united, state govt doing good job under CM Yediyurappa: Arun Singh
Bengaluru, Jun 16: BJP's national general secretary in-charge of Karnataka Arun Singh on Wednesday said the party's state unit was united and the government here was doing a good job under Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa's leadership.
Singh, who began his three-day visit to the state, amid speculation in some quarters about replacing Yediyurappa, did not wish to make any direct statement on the leadership change stating that he has already spoken on the issue.
"All our party workers, Minister and legislators are united, there are no differences of any kind," Singh said in response to a question.
Speaking to reporters here on his arrival in the city, he asked party legislators not to make any media statements and speak to the leadership individually if they have any concerns.
"Work in your constituency, work for your people and take the party work forward," Singh told legislators, as he asserted that good work was going on under Yediyurappa's leadership.
To a question on leadership change, he maintained that "I have said what have to say on this, several times, there is no use of asking it again and again."
Singh had recently ruled out replacing the Chief Minister, while asserting that Yediyurappa will continue in the top post.
Speculation has been rife for some time now that a section of the ruling BJP is trying to push for unseating Yediyurappa.
As part of his three-day visit, Singh will be holding a meeting with all the Ministers this evening, and during the next two days he will have one-on-one meetings with legislators and Ministers who want to meet him, and finally on Friday he will take part in the state BJP core committee meeting, party sources said.
Singh lauded the state government, Chief Minister and Minsters, stating that they have worked day and night during th COVID pandemic and have served the people.
He said his priority during the visit will be to focus purely on party's political developments, organizational work and how to carry it forward.
"We will review the work that has happened as part of the 'Seva Hi Sangathan' (Service is organisation) programme under which our workers during COVID, without caring for their lives, have done 11 kinds of seva (service) at the ground level, and see how we can take it forward," Singh said.
Also work on tree plantation drive that the party will take up, programme against the use of single-use plastic, preparation for International Yoga day, and other future activities of the party will be reviewed, he said.
Slamming the opposition, the BJP leader alleged that the Congress was only involved in levelling allegations and took a dig at the JD(S), saying it was in quarantine during the pandemic.
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8 dead, dozens wounded in Russian strike on Ukraine's Odesa port
Kyiv (AP): Eight people were killed and 27 wounded in a Russian missile strike on port infrastructure in Odesa, southern Ukraine, late on Friday, Ukraine's Emergency Service said on Saturday morning.
Some of the wounded were on a bus at the epicentre of the overnight strike, the service said in a Telegram post. Trucks caught fire in the parking lot, and cars were also damaged.
The port was struck with ballistic missiles, said Oleh Kiper, the head of the Odesa region.
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Elsewhere, Ukrainian forces hit a Russian warship and other facilities with drones, Ukraine's General Staff said in a statement on Saturday.
The nighttime attack on Friday hit the Russian warship “Okhotnik,” according to the statement posted to the Telegram messaging app.
The ship was patrolling in the Caspian Sea near an oil and gas production platform. The extent of the damage is still being clarified, the statement added.
A drilling platform at the Filanovsky oil and gas field in the Caspian Sea was also hit. The facility is operated by Russian oil giant Lukoil. Ukrainian drones also struck a radar system in the Krasnosilske area of Crimea, which Russia illegally annexed from Ukraine in 2014.
