"Why do you have so much hatred for beautiful, holy name of India?" Siddaramaiah asks PM
Bengaluru, July 26 (PTI): Taking a dig at Prime Minister Narendra Modi for deriding the opposition alliance 'INDIA', citing reviled names such as East India Company and Indian Mujahideen, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Wednesday sought to know why he has so much hatred for the beautiful, melodious and holy name of India.
Pointing out to the PM that Nirav Modi and Lalit Modi, who looted hundreds of crores of tax money of Indians and ran away from the country, too have his Modi surname, he wondered whether they can be compared to him.
"Honorable Prime Minister @narendramodi, you have compared the alliance of opposition parties 'INDIA' to the East India Company and the Indian Mujahideen. Nirav Modi and Lalit Modi, who looted hundreds of crores of tax money of Indians and ran away from the country, too have your Modi surname ? Can they be compared with you?" Siddaramaiah asked in a tweet.
Noting that Congress leader Rahul Gandhi was sued for defamation, sentenced to two years in jail, and disqualified from the Lok Sabha for asking the common question stating that Lalit and Nirav too have Modi in their names, he said, "Doesn't action taken against Rahul Gandhi apply to you, for your comparison comparing India to East India Company and Indian Mujahideen?"
Modi on Tuesday derided the opposition alliance INDIA as the most directionless the country had ever seen, and cited reviled names such as East India Company and Indian Mujahideen to assert that people cannot be misled merely by the use of the country's name.
With opposition parties rallying around the name 'INDIA' for their alliance, the PM cited the history of several organisations, including some banned extremist and terror outfits using the country's name, and panned the grouping as a collection of corrupt leaders and parties.
Siddaramaiah further asked, " Prime Minister @narendramodi why do you have so much hatred for the beautiful, melodious and holy name of India? Being so impatient with the name India, will you change the name of your own government programmes like Make in India, Start Up India, Skill India etc.?"
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.
K'taka bypolls: 11.87 percent voter turnout in Bagalkot, 9.01 percent in Davanagere South till 9 am
Bengaluru (PTI): In the first two hours since voting began for bypolls to two Bagalkot and Davanagere South assembly constituencies, the voter turnout stood at 11.87 percent and 9.01 percent, respectively, on Thursday.
The voting for the bypolls in two constituencies necessitated by the deaths of senior Congress MLAs H Y Meti and Shamanur Shivashankarappa, began at 7 am, the office of the Chief Electoral Officer said.
While the Congress faces the challenge of retaining both seats, the BJP is aiming to wrest them and deliver a setback to the ruling party, which is currently witnessing an "internal power struggle" over leadership.
A total of over 2.59 lakh eligible voters are expected to cast their votes at around 319 polling stations in Bagalkot, where nine candidates are in the fray.
In Davanagere South, over 2.31 lakh eligible voters are expected to vote across 284 polling stations, with 25 candidates contesting.
Officials said elaborate security arrangements have been made for the smooth conduct of bypolls.
The BJP has fielded former MLA and 2023 defeated candidate Veerabhadrayya Charantimath from Bagalkot, and a fresh face, Srinivas T Dasakariyappa, from Davanagere South.
The Congress has given tickets to family members of the late legislators in both constituencies. Bagalkot candidate Umesh Meti is the son of H Y Meti, while Samarth Mallikarjun from Davanagere South is the grandson of Shamanur Shivashankarappa.
Samarth’s father, S S Mallikarjun, is a minister in the Siddaramaiah-led Cabinet and in charge of Davanagere district, while his mother, Prabha Mallikarjun, is a Member of Parliament from the region.
In the 2023 Assembly elections, H Y Meti defeated BJP’s Charantimath by a margin of 5,878 votes in Bagalkot, while Shivashankarappa defeated BJP’s B G Ajay Kumar by 27,888 votes in Davanagere South.
