BY. FIROZ.T.TOTANAWALA
THE BANGALORE METRO REPORTER
OFFENCE IS THE BEST DEFENCE
YEDURAPPA INDULGES IN COUNTER OFFENCE AGAINST ALL WHISTLE BLOWERS
Chief Minister B.S. Yeddyurappa and some BJP leaders are under the impression that they can survive in power by blackmailing the opposition by raising the scams in regimes. They are following the dictum ‘offence is the best defense’. They see motives in everything that is said against them. They have taken that offence strategy to ridiculous level and are blaming the opposition even for some dissent in the BJP.
If one were to closely watch the political chat shows- discussion on various news channels, one can witness the BJP spokespersons getting aggressive and blaming the opposition for anything that had gone wrong under Yedurappa. They make sound bytes of opposition leaders having no right to question their acts. And they do not forget to mention that the people have given their mandate to them to rule the state for five years. These leaders start giving sermons to opposition leaders about how to behave!
Well, everybody knows that the corruption level under Yedurappa has reached rotten level with scams after scams getting exposed at regular intervals. The opposition, Congress and JDS, naturally demand action and resignation of Yedurappa in some scams and it is their right and duty. The opposition can not be expected to keep mum and function as a loyal ‘B’ team of the ruling party.
PERSONAL ROUTE
In fact, Yedurappa and his BJP Government have taken the politics of confrontation to personal level. Yedurappa had led the way from the front. When JD(S) Boss H D Deve Gowda and H D Kumarswamy levelled serious charges against Yedurappa, he had indulged in counter offence by charging the Father and Son of vitiating the political situation. He had vowed that he will root out JD(S) and the Father-Son from the state politics!
PRECEDENT EXCUSE
Instead of defending or taking action on the scams exposed, Yedurappa started talking of the similar scams in earlier regimes starting from 1995 when H D Deve Gowda was the chief minister. He even went to the extent of challenging on the scams for the last so many years in the Assembly in the presence of religious leaders and prominent people!
There was although no meaning in this sort of discussions when the Assembly itself is the proper forum. But Yedurappa cleverly managed to get the Assembly sessions adjourned on flimsy grounds, so that his scams do not come under the scanner. The Government also provoked the opposition to stage protests or walk outs so that they can avoid any discussions on the scams. And again they blame the opposition for abrupt end to the sessions.
SILENCING THE OPPOSITION
It is another matter that Yedurappa and his BJP Government had shown utter contempt towards constitutional bodies in the state. The Backward class Commission was prevented from working properly as the chairman was not pro-BJP. He was removed and the High Court quashed the removal. Similarly, the state Human Rights Commission is also being sidelined. Even to this day, the Government had not provided the SHRC with enough staff and infrastructure. In the case of Lokayukta, the treatment meted out to it by Yedurappa is well known. Disgusted with the attitude of his in punishing the honest, Lokayukta Santosh Hegde even resigned from the post.
The rest is history. The BJP High Command made all out efforts to make Justice Santosh Hegde withdraw the resignation and now, Santosh Hegde is even repenting his decision of withdrawing the resignation.
It is another matter that Yedurappa does not stand the sight of Lokayukta who had sent shivers among many ministers including Yedurappa. Katta Subramanya Naidu, a Minister was forced to resign when Lokayukta filed a case against him in the KIADB scam. The opposition particularly the JDS realising that Yedurappa was determined to stonewall any discussions on his multifaceted and multi dimensional scams, filed a detailed complaint against him with the Lokayukta. Yedurappa realized that he will be in soup if the Lokayukta conducts the probe and immediately set up a judicial Commission headed by a retired judge of the High Court to probe the cases which were before the Lokayukta. The Lokayukta was asked to hand over the files! To arm twist the opposition, Yedurappa directed the Judicial Commission to probe denotification cases from 1995 with an aim to damn the successive CMs since then. The commission will have to probe the denotifications done during the regime of H D Deve Gowda, SM Krishna, Dharam Singh and HD Kumarswamy. However, the HC issued a stay on the commission.
TARGETING THE GOVERNOR
The Governor HR Bharadwaj is been regularly targeted by Yedurappa and his BJP Government, the most. The Governor who is a constitutional expert and a former Central Law Minister is an outspoken person. He had advised and warned Yedurappa many times over the scams and the loot of natural resources (mining). But Yedurappa and his BJP government have not taken kindly to the Governor’s actions.
Moreover, the opposition have met the Governor several times complaining of Yedurappa’s scams and pleading for action. Yedurappa took strong exception to these meetings and accused the Governor of being a Congress agent. In fact, the state BJP President KS Eswarappa had asked the Governor to resign and work in the KPCC office!
It therefore becomes clear that Yedurappa and BJP are playing a well planned game. Continue to exploit the people and stash bundles of money in the process. And whosoever raises his voice against us attack him and accuse him of corruption, malpractices, favouritism etc. But, they do not know that while the innocent public are famous for silence, they definitely are not fools in understanding the actions of their leaders!.......
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