Congress invoking RSS to divert attention from governance lapses: K’taka BJP

Bengaluru, Oct 18 The Leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Council, Chalavadi Narayanaswamy, has objected to the denial of permission for the Rastriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) foot march in Chittapur and the removal of buntings and banners despite collecting nearly Rs 6,000 as fees for putting them up.

He termed it an arbitrary act of the local administration and an act of misconduct by Minister Priyank Kharge.

Chittapur assembly constituency is represented by Minister for RDPR, IT and BT Priyank Kharge.

Speaking to the media at the BJP state office, Jagannath Bhavan in Bengaluru, he answered questions on the issue. On the suspension of a PDO in connection with the RSS march, he said, “RSS is not a political party; it is an organisation like any other public association. Anyone can participate in it. There is also a directive from the central government.”

Taking on Minister Priyank Kharge and Congress MLC B K Hariprasad, he said, “The AICC has a unit for nomadic communities, and from Karnataka, Dr A.S. Prabhakar, a professor at Hampi University, has been appointed as its national convener. You have appointed him as an office-bearer in the AICC. Is this illegal? Or is being part of a social organisation wrong?”

He demanded that the Congress president, Mallikarjun Kharge, respond to this.

He further criticised, “In Congress, you can appoint anyone to work, but why should working in organisations be considered wrong? To cover up mishaps happening in the state, they are bringing up the RSS issue. I am only responding because a question on RSS was asked. RSS is an organisation that works for the country; it is a gathering of patriots.”

Narayanaswamy asked, “Priyank Kharge, a girl from Kalaburagi, was raped in Mysuru. Aren’t you the minister from Kalaburagi? Did you go there and inquire about what happened? Do you have compassion for those nomadic and poor people? In Bijapur, a 9-year-old girl was raped and murdered — have you bothered about that? In your own hometown, the roof of a school in Wadi collapsed. Only because it was a holiday were the children saved. Did you take any action on that?

A librarian in your region committed suicide because he was not paid his salary. Did you bother about that? In your own department, watermen (Niraganti) have not been paid for 23 months. To hide such issues and to escape being called incompetent, you keep shouting ‘RSS, RSS’,” he said.

He charged, “Why do you hold a ministerial position? You have failed to discharge your duties as a minister. You are misleading people and playing with their lives. No compensation has been given for floods and droughts; contractors have not been paid; they say you are demanding 80 per cent commission. Without addressing such issues, you keep focusing on petty matters. You are unfit to govern. Priyank Kharge is arrogant and irresponsible. He cannot remain quiet, always looking for conflict,” he alleged.

“You (Priyank Kharge) yourself come from the Dalit community. You know what the situation of Dalits in this society is. Has Priyank Kharge ever worked in a single Dalit organisation?” Narayanaswamy asked.

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