Bypolls show Siddu caused damage to his party: HDK

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Training his guns on leader of the Opposition in the Assembly, Mr Siddaramaiah, former chief minister H.D. Kumarswamy on Saturday asked why he had become jealous of the growth of Janata Dal (Secular) in recent days under the stable leadership of former prime minister H. D. Deve Gowda.

Speaking at a function organised to celebrate Dr B.R. Ambedkar’s 121st birth anniversary at the JD(S) party office here, Mr Kumaraswamy caustically remarked: “How much double standards do you adopt? You can wait in front of Mrs Sonia Gandhi’s house in Delhi for days together just to get a glimpse of her. But, if some of our party leaders meet Mr Deve Gowda at his residence, you criticise it. What moral right do you have to criticise our party?”

He questioned why Mr Siddaramaiah, who did not have an issue in accepting Mrs Gandhi as his supreme leader, was envious of Mr Gowda being the supreme leader of JD(S) or he (Kumaraswamy) leading the party from the front.

According to him, it was the Congress party which patronised dynastic politics one way or the other, therefore, no leader in that party had a right to criticise JD(S) leaders.

He claimed that Mr Siddaramaiah was the most power-hungry person among the lot of politicians in state politics. “He can only think of ruining the party which gives him shelter and power. By now, Congress party might have realised that he was the one who caused maximum damage during all the by-elections that were necessited due to Operation Lotus in the State”, he alleged.

Explaining similar incidents, Mr Kumaraswamy said Mr Siddaramaiah indeed could not make it to the top post on two occasions: first when Janata Parivar was in power in 1994-99 in the state and again between 2004-06, when Congress and JD(S) coalition government came to power. Explaining how Mr Siddaramaiah was denied the Chief Minister’s post the second time, Mr Kumarswamy said Congress leaders in Delhi had only offered to accept the Maharashtra model, and hence JD(S) had no choice but to accept it.