The Hindu : Karnataka News : `Karnataka Government will fall after bypolls'

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Jun 01, 2005

Karnataka

Karnataka

`Karnataka Government will fall after bypolls'

Special Correspondent

UPA Government too will not last long, says Venkaiah Naidu

BANGALORE: "The outcome of the Shimoga Lok Sabha and the Chamarajpet Assembly byelections will trigger the fall of the Dharam Singh-led coalition Government and result in a snap poll in Karnataka," according to the vice-president of the Bharatiya Janata Party, M. Venkaiah Naidu.

Addressing a well-attended election meeting at Chamarajpet here on Tuesday, Mr. Naidu, after flagging off a colourful motorcade of two-wheelers and four-wheelers, said the coalition Government in the State, with bickering between the partners — the Congress and the Janata Dal (Secular) — would collapse in due course. "The fall of the coalition here will herald the end of the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) Government at the Centre, which too is shaky," he said. Mr. Naidu criticised the Congress president, Sonia Gandhi, for her reported remarks against the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) and the former Prime Minister, A.B. Vajpayee. Ms. Gandhi had said that the image of the country had been sullied during the NDA rule and the prime ministership of Mr. Vajpayee. On the contrary, the heads of several countries expressed disappointment after the NDA failed to form the Government and Mr. Vajpayee did not become the Prime Minister again, he claimed.

Mr. Naidu said the coalition Government here and the UPA had held out all sorts of promises to the people. But their programmes remained on paper. The Government had done nothing to control the spiralling prices.

He said there was no harmony between the coalition partners here, and it was all the more evident in the run-up to the byelections. Mr. Dharam Singh was campaigning in favour of one candidate and the Deputy Chief Minister, Siddaramaiah, for a rival candidate.

Referring to the Chamarajpet constituency, which had twice elected the BJP candidate, Pramila Nesargi, he said the area, a part of old Bangalore, was losing its charm because of anti-social elements. "There are also several live-band joints and gambling dens thriving in the constituency." Mr. Naidu later left for Visakhapatnam in connection with a byelection there. On Monday, he addressed three election meetings at Anavatti, Shiralkoppa and Shikaripur in the Shimoga Lok Sabha constituency.

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