PM Modi hails Deve Gowda in Rajya Sabha, provides fodder to rumour mills

BENGALURU: Even as he lambasted the Opposition on its stand on the farmers’ protest during his speech in the Rajya Sabha on Monday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had only words of praise for former Prime Minister and JDS supremo HD Deve Gowda.

He hailed Gowda as someone who has devoted his life to the welfare of farmers. This comes at a time when the BJP and JDS in Karnataka are cosying up to each other. It also comes barely days after the JDS backed the BJP to elect M K Pranesh of the saffron party as Karnataka Legislative Council deputy chairman. In exchange, the BJP is expected to help JDS get its leader Basavaraj Horatti elected Council chairman on Tuesday. 

“I am indebted to Deve Gowdaji. He extended dignity to this whole debate and even praised the government for its good work. I express my heartfelt gratitude to him,” said Modi. This came as a reaction to Gowda’s Motion of Thanks speech in the Rajya Sabha last week, where he said that since 2014, some programmes implemented by the Modi government have shown results. Gowda had asked for the farmers’ issues to be sorted out immediately and demanded that the government hold talks.

In December last year, PM Modi had set off a buzz around the BJP’s proximity with JDS when he took to his social media pages to greet former Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy on his birthday — a courtesy that wasn’t extended even when Kumaraswamy was chief minister. On that day, the Prime Minister had also heaped praise on the JDS supremo.