Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar on Thursday asserted that the BJP cannot dismantle the JD-S due to their strong presence in the south of the state. Addressing the media at the Vidhana Soudha, he responded to the BJP’s foot march (padyatra) against Chief Minister Siddaramaiah in the alleged MUDA case.
“Given JD-S’ stronghold in south Karnataka, the BJP cannot dismantle them,” Shivakumar stated. He emphasized that whether it’s Kumaraswamy, himself, or any BJP member, everyone is engaged in politics, and he believes Kumaraswamy will safeguard his party and maintain its presence.
Shivakumar pointed out that the BJP won about 10 constituencies with JD-S’s support in the Lok Sabha elections, including Mysuru, Mandya, and Bengaluru Rural. He questioned how JD-S would tolerate being disregarded and undermined by the BJP. “JD-S can only be dismantled if both parties merge with each other,” he added.
When asked about Kumaraswamy’s accusations regarding the pen drive issue and BJP State General Secretary Preetham Gowda, Shivakumar redirected focus to the padyatra. “We are preparing to respond to their (BJP) padyatra. Once the final details of their padyatra are available, we will finalize our plan of action. There were 30 scandals during the BJP government’s tenure. We will expose one scandal at a time,” he said.
On allegations that the Union government is attempting to undermine the state government through Raj Bhavan, Shivakumar commented, “I will provide clarification after the Cabinet meeting. The Constitution and democratic system are still in place.”
Shivakumar also discussed his meeting with the Prime Minister, highlighting Bengaluru’s importance due to its substantial tax revenue contributions and global interest. He mentioned requests for military land for the ring road and funding for various projects, including the tunnel road.
“We also met with the Defence and Urban Development ministers to seek funding for various projects,” he said, adding that he requested the allocation of funds announced in the previous budget. “The Prime Minister has assured us that our request will be reviewed,” Shivakumar concluded.
