Eshwarappa targets Congress, raises communalism debate

Shivamogga: Senior BJP leader and former Deputy Chief Minister K S Eshwarappa stirred a political debate on Thursday by questioning what he described as a double standard in defining communalism.

Speaking to reporters, he said that when Hindus speak about unity, it is often labelled as communalism, but similar expressions in favour of Muslims are not subjected to the same criticism. Referring to developments in Davanagere, he questioned whether demands made to the Congress to field a Muslim candidate should also be considered communal.

Eshwarappa alleged that the Congress is attempting to win the April 9 by-election to the Davanagere South assembly constituency by appealing to religious sentiments and dividing voters. He accused the party of resorting to indirect methods to secure electoral gains.

He also called for legal action against Minister Zameer Ahmed Khan, alleging that his statements could disrupt communal harmony. According to Eshwarappa, strict action is necessary to prevent tensions in society.

Turning to environmental concerns, he reiterated opposition to the proposed Sharavathi pumped storage project in the Western Ghats. He described the project as environmentally damaging and said protests by activists, religious leaders and local groups have intensified in recent months.

He noted that the Karnataka High Court has also made observations on the matter, and urged authorities to reconsider the project. He further appealed to Shivamogga MP B Y Raghavendra to continue raising the issue with the Centre and work towards scrapping the proposal.