Siddaramaiah, Vijayendra lead charge for Bagalkote
Bagalkote (Karnataka) (PTI): Poll-bound Bagalkote on Monday witnessed a high-decibel electioneering with both ruling Congress and opposition BJP attempting to woo the voters.
The by-poll to Bagalkote and Davanagere South assembly constituencies will take place on April 9. The elections were necessitated following the demise of sitting MLAs H Y Meti (Bagalkote) and Shamanur Shivashankarappa (Davangere South).
Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Monday reached Bagalkote to campaign for Meti’s son Umesh Meti, who will have a direct contest with BJP’s Charantimath.
Sporting a vermillion on his forehead, Siddaramaiah addressed a public meeting in the district headquarters town of north Karnataka.
Recalling the works done by H Y Meti, he appealed to the people to vote for the Congress candidate and Meti’s son Umesh Meti.
Siddaramaiah also told the audience about the five guarantees of the Congress government, which empowered the citizens of the state.
According to him, the Congress supported the Below Poverty Line families through the five guarantees and indirectly gave them the benefit of Rs 5,000 to Rs 6,000 a month.
He also hit out at the BJP, alleging that there was no development in the state during their reign from 2019 to 2023 in Karnataka.
Touching upon the issue of raising the height of Almatti Dam on Krishna river, Siddaramaiah alleged that the BJP government at the Centre stalled it by not issuing a gazette notification.
“Even after 13 years, the Centre did not issue the gazette notification. You must understand this. There is the BJP government at the Centre and now in the opposition. Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar and I met the central ministers several times but to no avail,” he alleged.
Siddaramaiah called on people to ask BJP candidate Charantimath, why it has not been notified in the gazette.
The BJP leaders and workers on Monday took out a march in the city holding party flags, posters and banners. They raised slogans in favour of the party candidate.
Speaking to reporters, Vijayendra expressed confidence that voters will bless the party and ensure the victory of its candidate Veeranna Charantimath in Bagalkote assembly bypoll, regardless of who campaigns in the constituency.
He said support for the BJP is steadily increasing in the constituency and party workers are actively engaged in campaigning from early morning.
The Shikaripura MLA said the political atmosphere in Bagalkote is in favour of the BJP and asserted that Charantimath would win by a comfortable margin.
“No tactics or conspiracies of the Congress will work,” Vijayendra said.
Referring to the role of the ruling party, the BJP state chief alleged that despite Bagalkote being the district that gave Chief Minister Siddaramaiah a ‘political rebirth’, it has been neglected by the government.
Siddaramaiah had contested the 2018 assembly election from the Badami assembly segment in Bagalkote district and won.
He said voters are aware of the ground realities, irrespective of speeches made during the campaign.
Alleging misuse of power, he said the Congress is "attempting to influence" voters using money and muscle power, but added that “aware voters” have decided to support the BJP.
Replying to a question on campaign dynamics, he described Charantimath as a "people-friendly" leader and claimed that even some Congress members want him to win. “When even Congress members want him to win, there is nothing wrong if others also support him,” he said.
He further claimed that in Bagalkote and Davangere South seats, some Congress workers are indirectly supporting the BJP.
“Anyone who works for the victory of the BJP candidate will be welcomed,” he said, adding that the election results will reflect the internal situation within both parties.
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Different communities living in harmony in Assam as BJP is in power: Himanta
Dhemaji/Majuli/Sadiya (PTI): Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Monday said different communities were living in harmony as the BJP was in power in the state.
Addressing back-to-back election rallies in Dhemaji, Majuli, Naoboicha and Sadiya, he accused the Congress of working only for 'Bangladeshi-Miyas', while ignoring the welfare of the indigenous population.
"We want to work for the people living in Assam -- the Assamese, Bengali and Hindi speaking people, Gorkhas, tribals, all communities. All the communities are in harmony because the BJP is in power," he said.
Sarma alleged that the Congress appeased 'Bangladeshi Miyas' when it was in power, while the BJP is working for the welfare of the indigenous community.
"You can see for yourself now that after the BJP came to power, the Bangladeshi-Miyas have been cut to size. During this term, we broke the hands and legs of the Bangladeshi-Miyas politically; next time we will break their backbone so that they cannot live peacefully in Assam," he said.
'Miya' is originally a pejorative term used for Bengali-speaking Muslims in Assam, and they are usually identified as immigrants from what is now Bangladesh. In recent years, activists from the community have started adopting the term as a gesture of defiance.
Sarma claimed that he is the first chief minister to have visited the river-island of Majuli at least 15 times.
"Development of Majuli started in 2016, when the BJP came to power in the state. Congress did not want to come here as they didn't want to solve the problems," he said.
The CM also took a jibe at the Congress's election slogan of 'Natun Bor Asom' (new greater Assam).
"We want our 'Bor Asom' on the ideals of Sankardev and Chaolung Sukapha, not a 'Natun Bor Asom' of Bangladeshi-Miyas," he said.
Elections for the 126-member assembly will be held on April 9, with counting of votes scheduled on May 4.
