Daijiworld Media Network – Mangaluru (MS)
Mangaluru, Feb 17: Deputy chief minister D K Shivakumar who is in the city to take part in the Congress convention on Saturday, expressed optimism about the potential for change in politics, highlighting the importance of adaptability and possibility. “Hence we are holding the convention this time in Mangaluru. There are more chances of us winning this time in this region,” he said.
He further said, “There is a need to address prevalent issues such as unemployment and business stagnation in coastal Karnataka.”
Shivakumar criticized the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for what he deemed as inadequate development efforts in the region. He said that he plans to introduce innovative ideas and initiatives to stimulate economic growth and job creation if the Congress secures victory.
Regarding recent controversies, including the incident at St Gerosa School, Shivakumar assured that legal actions would be taken, asserting the supremacy of the law over political influence.
Reacting to the appeasement charges, Shivakumar asked why can’t government not allocate even 1 per cent budget to Muslims.
“In 3.71 lac crore budget, only Rs 3,000 crore have been allocated to Muslims for the schools and development. Shouldn’t we allocate even 1 per cent to Muslims?” Shivakumar told media persons.
He said that BJP has a habit of making everything a political issue.
Karnataka government has allocated Rs 200 crore for the development of Christian community and Rs 100 crore for the protection and development of Waqf properties and has also made slew of announcements of release of grants to them.
On BJP and JD (S) planning to field a strong candidate against his brother, Shivakumar said that he is confident that people will not vote for their candidate.
“I had contested against former PM Deve Gowda in 1985 and 1990 elections. I have contested against H.D. Kumaraswamy also. When BJP and JD(S) had fielded Kumaraswamy’s wife Anita against me, I had won with a margin of 1.31 lac votes,” he said.
He said that the voters are with the Congress party and his brother Suresh is not a 'Delhi MP' but a ground level worker.
“The people have seen the difference between the governance between Deve Gowda, Kumaraswamy and him. Let them field any candidate, people will make better judgment,” Shivakumar said.
In response to potential political challenges, Shivakumar welcomed competition in elections, stating that the voters' intelligence would determine the outcome. He highlighted the developmental progress in the constituency and announced the shortlisting of candidates for the upcoming Dakshina Kannada Lok Sabha elections, pending a comprehensive survey.
With inputs from IANS