The Hindu : Karnataka News : Govt. has no right to stay: BJP

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, May 04, 2005

Karnataka

Karnataka

Govt. has no right to stay: BJP

Special Correspondent

High Court judgment on BMIC project is a slap on its face, says Yediyurappa

BREATHING FIRE: BJP leaders K.S. Eshwarappa, B.S. Yediyurappa, Jagadish Shettar, D.H. Shankaramurthy and Govind Karjol at the legislature party meeting in Bangalore on Tuesday. — Photo: K. Gopinathan

BANGALORE: The Leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Assembly, B.S. Yediyurappa, has demanded the resignation of the coalition Government on various counts. He said the dismissal of the public interest litigation petition questioning to the acquisition of land for the Bangalore-Mysore Infrastructure Corridor (BMIC) project is a slap on the Government's face and a rebuff, in particular, to the former Prime Minister H.D. Deve Gowda who had opposed the project.

Briefing presspersons after a meeting of the BJP legislature party here on Tuesday, he said the Government should bow to the judgment and make an honourable exit. The coalition Government has no moral right to continue in office, he said.

Legislature session sought

At the legislature party meeting, legislators unanimously demanded that the Government should immediately convene a three-day special session of the legislature. The BJP has set May 9 as the deadline for the Government to heed its demand, failing which all the BJP legislators will sit in dharna in front of the Vidhana Soudha from that day. Most of the 90 BJP legislators attended the meeting. The two notable absentees were H. Halappa (Hosanagar) and Gopalakrishna Belur (Sagar) who are followers of the former Chief Minister and State President of the Samajwadi Party, S. Bangarappa.

The BJP has sought the special session of the legislature to discuss several issues confronting the State, including the projects being taken up by Andhra Pradesh in the Krishna basin. Other issues that the BJP proposes to raise are the land grabbing allegations made by Mr. Deve Gowda and the Cauvery waters issue, which has been stoked again by the Union Minister Mani Shankar Aiyar.

Mr. Yediyurappa used the occasion to lash out at Mr. Deve Gowda and said but for his action in constituting a three-member expert committee of Chief Ministers headed by the then West Bengal Chief Minister, Jyoti Basu, the height of the Alamatti dam across the Krishna would have been 524 metres instead of the present 519.6 metres. It was Mr. Deve Gowda who had suggested that the height of the dam be restricted and the committee of experts also recommended it. The Supreme Court, while disposing of a petition pertaining to the Alamatti dam, adhered to the recommendation of the expert committee.

Mr. Yediyurappa said the all-party delegation that the Chief Minister, N. Dharam Singh, led to meet the Prime Minister, Manmohan Singh, on the unauthorised Krishna basin projects undertaken by Andhra Pradesh was a futile exercise, and the memorandum submitted to the Prime Minister did not evoke any response.

On the contrary, the Centre, despite the April 24, 2000 orders of the Supreme Court that there should be no new irrigation project in the Krishna basin, granted environmental clearance for the Pulichintala project.

Within days of obtaining the clearance, Andhra Pradesh floated global tenders for 26 unauthorised projects in the Krishna basin costing Rs. 45,000 crores, and some of those projects are being executed.

On the Cauvery issue, which has again surfaced following a statement by Mr. Aiyar two days ago, Mr. Yediyurappa said the Minister owed an apology to the people of Karnataka. He should remember that he is a Union Minister and not a Minister in the Tamil Nadu Government.

Mr. Yediyurappa alleged that Mr. Deve Gowda is indulging in "blackmail politics" by making allegations of land grabbing. If the Congress has indulged in land grabbing, why did the Janata Dal (S) align with it to form the Government?

If there is sufficient evidence, Mr. Deve Gowda should direct the Revenue Minister to take action.

Asked whether the meeting considered the party candidates for the byelections to the Shimoga Lok Sabha and Chamarajpet Assembly seats, he said the candidates will be finalised shortly.

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