'India's corporates put in Rs 300 crore to create Modi wave'
Former PM H.D. Deve Gowda claims country's private sector behind NaMo "hype"
By : shilpa p
Update: 2014-04-05 03:52 GMT
Mysore: Dismissing the “Modi wave” in the country as mere media hype, former Prime Minister and JD(S) supremo, H.D. Deve Gowda, charged on Friday that the corporate sector had splurged Rs 300 crore on creating it.
“Narendra Modi has been dismissive about the chances of the Third Front these elections but he had made similar statements about the Aam Aadmi Party during the Assembly elections held in five states not so long ago, and you know what happened.
It will be the same with the Third Front,” he insisted during an interaction with the media here. In a disarmingly candid admission, he added, “I am of the old order, I can’t make provoking speeches. Some call me ‘Halli gowda (villager)’ and say I don’t know how to speak. But I will go to the people with a begging bowl and get whatever votes they give us.”
As for the Congress and BJP's claims about winning 23 seats these Lok Sabha elections from the state, he said he found it difficult to understand whether they were giving the JD(S) five or zero seats in the bargain.
"I had to rest for five months owing to my ill health and so we lost both the Mandya and Bengaluru rural byelections. But we have learnt a lesson and I have been working to strengthen the party for the past five months,” he disclosed.
Refusing to be drawn out on KPCC president, G Parameshwar’s recent stinging remarks on him, Mr Gowda merely observed that he had been in politics for 52 years now and had never done anything unconstitutional. “I don’t have the energy to react to such people. I will not comment.”
Unmoved by BJP’s show of sympathy for him on Dr Parameshwar’s comments, he remarked dryly, “The BJP has developed unexplained love for me these days. But they have already finished Kumaraswamy and now are planning to finish me.”