In an embarrassment to the ruling BJP, Mudigere legislator MP Kumaraswamy on Thursday staged a protest in Vidhana Soudha all by himself, accusing the government of neglecting his flood-hit constituency.
Kumaraswamy’s demand is that Mudigere should be brought under the ambit of flood relief through the National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF) and State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF).
Kumaraswamy sat in protest in front of Mahatma Gandhi’s statue in Vidhana Soudha with a placard addressed to Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai seeking NDRF/SDRF funds for Mudigere and compensation to those who lost their homes, land and crops.
“In 2019, we had severe floods in which six people got washed away along with their homes. It took us 15 days to recover their bodies. Not just homes, but even coffee estates got washed away. We asked for relief and [the government] showed extreme neglect. We kept quiet. Last year, there were floods again,” he said.
“This time, I won’t ask why funds were given to others. But, I will say that when Shivamogga City comes under NDRF, why not Mudigere, which is a forest area in the Western Ghats region that received 900 mm rainfall?” he said.
Kumaraswamy’s reference to Shivamogga is seen as a dig at former chief minister BS Yediyurappa and RDPR Minister KS Eshwarappa; both of them belong to the Shivamogga district.
The BJP MLA even said that former JD(S) chief minister HD Kumaraswamy was more helpful. “When I was elected in 2018, Kumaraswamy was the CM. I requested him, with folded hands, for help. He gave grants and even reached out to me. But now, despite our own party being in power, there’s neglect,” he said.
This monsoon saw Karnataka suffering floods for the fourth consecutive year.