Siddaramaiah to BS Yeddyurappa: Goa BJP playing a double game with you

Bengaluru: Taking pot-shots at state BJP leaders in general and BJP state president, B.S. Yeddyurappa in particular, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Sunday wondered aloud what had happened to the letter written by Goa Chief Minister, Manohar Parrikar to Mr Yeddyurappa on release of Mahadayi water to Karnataka?

Will BJP leaders at least now accept that their Goa counterparts were playing a double game with Karnataka, he asked while speaking to reporters after garlanding Tamil poet Tiruvalluvar's statue in Halasooru here. He remarked that Yeddyurappa in particular was behaving like Uttarakumar in the Mahabharata who used to boast in front of women folk in his palace. “Where has the bravado of Mr Yeddyurappa gone now?,” he questioned angrily.

In response to a question, Mr Siddaramaiah shot back that the all-party meeting convened by him on Saturday was successful as it unanimously decided to take a delegation to Prime Minister, Narendra Modi in New Delhi to seek his intervention in resolving the Mahadayi row.

“Although BJP leaders have started accusing us (Congress) of playing politics on this issue, I would like to ask them who assured Mahadayi agitators that they will ensure the flow of water in Kalasa Banduri canal by the end of December 30 last year? It was none other than Mr Yeddyurappa himself. It was Mr Yeddyurappa who read out a letter from Mr Parrikar in a public rally, not me,” he snapped.

Answering another question, Mr Siddaramaiah shot back that Mr Rahul Gandhi or Mrs Sonia Gandhi were not the PMs. “The Congress has every right to demand Prime Minister Modi's intervention in resolving this crisis. How can anyone ask Mr Gandhi or Mrs Gandhi to intervene in this matter when they do not hold any constitutional post? It is clear that the BJP leaders are left with no choice but to indulge in politicking over this issue instead of seeking Mr Modi's intervention,” the Chief Minister stated.