Former minister launches scathing attack on CM

Mysuru: Former minister S.R. Mahesh has accused Chief Minister Siddaramaiah of taking credit for development works in KR Nagar that were initiated during his own tenure as MLA. Addressing a press conference at his Mysuru office on Tuesday, Mahesh claimed, “The CM only performed the groundbreaking ceremony (guddali pooja) for works in KR Nagar that I had secured funding for. Siddaramaiah has not granted any new funds for the constituency.”

Mahesh, who lost in the previous assembly election, stated that out of the Rs 515 crore allocated to KR Nagar, Rs 215 crore was sanctioned when he was the MLA. “The project for which the CM recently did a guddali pooja hasn’t even been tendered yet. It’s worth Rs 235 crore, but only Rs 20 crore has actually gone through the tender process. For this, the CM arrived in a helicopter,” he said.

Taking a jibe at Siddaramaiah’s past defeats, Mahesh said, “They say I lost because of the sins I committed. If losing is a sign of sin, how many times has Siddaramaiah lost? Has his pot of sins not overflowed? The projects he’s inaugurating now in KR Nagar were all ones I brought in.”

Mahesh also targeted the CM and KR Nagar MLA Ravishankar for failing to check rising prices. “Prices of everything — diesel, petrol, liquor — have gone up. From milk to alcohol, everything is costlier under Siddaramaiah’s rule. I have spent 20 years working at the grassroots for my constituency’s development,” he said.

Referring to Siddaramaiah’s past, Mahesh added, “It was Deve Gowda who first made him the finance minister. Now Siddaramaiah calls others casteist. Is he truly a socialist leader?” He went on to challenge the CM to a public debate on state debt, claiming, “Out of Karnataka’s total debt of Rs 7.81 lakh crore, Rs 4.95 lakh crore was incurred under Siddaramaiah alone.”

Commenting on the appointment of actress Tamannaah Bhatia as the brand ambassador for Karnataka Soaps and Detergents Ltd (KSDL), Mahesh questioned the decision. “During my time as tourism minister, we appointed Yaduveer Wadiyar as brand ambassador because of the Wadiyar family’s immense contribution to the state. At that time, Yaduveer was not active in politics. Now everyone is asking why Tamannaah was chosen. There are many achievers like Kalpana Chawla who deserve recognition. Replace Tamannaah with someone more deserving,” he urged.