State BJP president B.Y. Vijayendra said here on Thursday that development in Karnataka has taken a back seat under Congress which was fixated on guarantee schemes.
Speaking to media persons, Mr. Vijayendra said people have realised that the Congress was extending benefits on the one hand but charging for it surreptitiously on the other. He said while women were being given free rides, the fare for buses has been hiked by 30 per cent which was being borne by men.
“Similarly, the BJP government under B.S. Yediyurappa had mandated that installation of transformers by farmers for powering irrigation pump sets should not exceed ₹25,000, and the remaining amount if any would be borne by the State. But under Congress the farmers are forced to meet the full cost of transformer installation that can be as high as ₹3.25 lakh,” said Mr. Vijayendra.
He listed a slew of welfare schemes introduced by the BJP which has been withdrawn by Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and said that this includes scholarships for children of farmers. ‘’This is a move by a government which professes to be pro-farmers,” he added. The Congress was also accused of diverting nearly ₹24000 crore of SC/ST funds to meet the cost of implementing the guarantee schemes.
Mr. Vijayendra said the BJP government has increased the incentive for dairy farmers but the Congress had not paid the incentives due to the beneficiaries and there were arrears to the tune of ₹680 crore. Similarly, the PM Kisan Samman Yojana had a State component under the BJP government which has been withdrawn by Mr. Siddaramaiah to meet its guarantee schemes, said Mr.Vijayendra.
On the Congress prospects in the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections in the State Mr. Vijayendra said Mr. Siddaramaiah and other leaders were under an illusion that they would win more than 20 seats. But as the elections draw nearer, they have realised that the Congress was losing ground and hence have become desperate, he added.
Mr. Vijayendra lashed out at the Congress for the alleged attack on the BJP workers in Bengaluru rural and said that it was also a sign of desperation. “But the BJP will not be cowed down by such intimidatory tactics of the Congress which is determined to win using money and muscle power,” he added claiming that such attacks on the BJP workers will increase as the elections draw closer.
Reacting to the barbs of Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar over BJP candidates and leaders calling on Nirmalananda Swamiji of Adi Chunchanagiri Mutt, Mr. Vijayendra said it was also a sign of desperation. It is customary and also a tradition to seek blessings of the religious heads by leaders of all political parties. But if the Congress was critical of such an innocuous move then it is an outcome of their frustration, he added.
Mr.Vijayendra inducted a few Congress functionaries into the BJP fold on the occasion. BJP candidate from Chamarajanagar Balaraj, city BJP president L. Nagendra and others were present.
