Leaders forget plans to revive JD(S) at membership drive

JD(S) leaders H D Deve Gowda and H D Kumaraswamy seemed to have only two things on the agenda: the loss of their party office on Race Course Road and criticising Chief Minister Siddaramaiah.

The occasion was the launch of a membership drive at the Palace Grounds on Saturday, but they hardly spoke on measures to strengthen the party.

Deve Gowda said that the people of the State had been given all the ‘bhagyas’ (fortunes - the various schemes with the bhagya suffix). It remains to be seen whether it is going to be ‘dourbhagya’ (misfortune) of the Congress, the former prime minister said.

Kumaraswamy said Siddaramaiah was no doubt the chief minister. But he had not been left with any stature and strength which he had when he was in the JD(S).

“He can’t claim anymore that he is a sincere person. Has Siddaramaiah given site to dalits through the Shantinagar Housing Co-operative Society? Is he ready to talk about the scam the society is involved in? His sins are brimming over,” Kumaraswamy said.

Party office

Referring to the loss of the party office, Gowda said he had no special sentiment for the building. But the party had to survive even after his demise, the former prime minister said.
For this, he said, he was ready to work till the party returned to power, he said.

Gowda exhorted the party workers to take up the membership drive seriously and get at least 20 to 30 new members in the limits of each polling booth.

Kumaraswamy said the Congress government was treading on the corrupt path of the previous BJP government.

The responsibility of showing that the party does not belong to the father-son duo, as is being made out, rests on the core committee, he said.

Madhu Bangarappa, Y S V Datta, Bandeppa Kashempur were among those present. The notable absentees were MLAs Zameer Ahmed Khan and N Cheluvarayaswamy.
DH News Service