The opposition Janata Dal (Secular) staged a protest on Saturday near the newly inaugurated Kempegowda statue at Bengaluru airport against the ruling BJP government for not inviting former prime minister Devegowda to the inaugural event. The 108-feet tall statue was inaugurated by PM Narendra Modi on Friday.
A post from the official Twitter handle of JDS read, “A protest was held near Kempegowda's huge statue near Kempegowda International Airport against the state BJP government's policy of not inviting former Prime Minister Mr. HD Deve Gowda to the Kempegowda statue inaugural program.” Many MLAs and party members participated in the protest and expressed their anguish towards Karnataka BJP.
However, Karnataka BJP clarified that the first invitation was sent to former PM Devegowda and accused JDS of spreading lies. A tweet from the official handle of BJP read, “Not only was the first invitation letter sent to Mr. Devegowda, the only Kannadiga who was the Prime Minister, Mr. @BSBommai himself called and invited. JDS has shown its timely wisdom by lying in such matters.”
{{/usCountry}}However, Karnataka BJP clarified that the first invitation was sent to former PM Devegowda and accused JDS of spreading lies. A tweet from the official handle of BJP read, “Not only was the first invitation letter sent to Mr. Devegowda, the only Kannadiga who was the Prime Minister, Mr. @BSBommai himself called and invited. JDS has shown its timely wisdom by lying in such matters.”
{{/usCountry}}The state unit of BJP also said that the party never ignored people who served the soil of Karnataka, irrespective of politics. “Not only this, the BJP has followed and recognized those who have served this soil without compromising on the issue of Kannada identity, not forgetting those from the far side of our state. 'Sab ka saath, sab ka vikas' is a puzzle that will never be solved for the JDS,” said another tweet.