The city BJP president and former MLA L. Nagendra launched a scathing attack on the State government, saying that its policies have led to the price hike and burdened the commoners, while there was unbridled corruption in various departments.
Speaking to media persons here on Tuesday, Mr. Nagendra said that Chief Minister Siddaramaiah had no control over his cabinet, and the Ministers were engaged in rampant loot and corruption.
He said that the prices of essential commodities have skyrocketed under the current government and claimed that ever since the Congress government came to power nearly two years ago, the price of milk has risen by ₹9 a litre.
The government claims to support milk producers, but nearly ₹662 crore is yet to be paid to them, and they were also promised incentives.
The fate of the people in the State is akin to the pressure in a cooker and despite the constant claim of implementation of guarantee schemes, the rising price was hurting the people. He accused the administration of increasing charges on basic healthcare services that were supposed to be free. Besides, the prices of electricity, seeds, outpatient department services, etc., have been raised, he added.
“The State government is taxing everything except air,” Mr. Nagendra said.
To protest against rising prices, the BJP will stage demonstrations and protests at Gandhi Square in Mysuru and Freedom Park in Bengaluru. The party will also launch the “Janaakrosha Yatra” in Mysuru on April 7, followed by statewide protests, Mr. Nagendra added.
Accusing the Congress of placating the Muslims, Mr. Nagendra said that the State government’s decision to introduce reservations for minorities in contract allocations was unprecedented and was nothing short of appeasement.
“No other State in the country has implemented religion-based reservations. This government is working against Ambedkar’s ideals,” Mr. Nagendra alleged.
The BJP will launch a statewide protest demanding the withdrawal of the decision, and there will be a night-long sit-in protest in Bengaluru.
He said two years have been wasted without any development work, and we will fight the divisive policies of the Congress government.
Expressing dissatisfaction with the Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) budget for 2025-26, Mr. Nagendra stated that it lacks provisions for the welfare of the general public. There is no plan to allot sites to landless citizens. He accused the government of deliberately delaying local body elections to avoid facing the BJP-JD(S) alliance. In the absence of an elected body in the corporation, funds were lapsing and remained unutilised, Mr. Nagendra added.
Mr. Nagendra also criticised the efficacy of the e-khata system and questioned whether the officials were fulfilling the promises made by the government. “Let them provide records as to how many households have received e-khata,” Mr.Nagendra added.
MLA for Krishnaraja T.S. Srivatsa and others were present.
Published - April 01, 2025 07:01 pm IST
