BJP dividing people, spreading hatred: Rahul

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday slammed the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for dividing people and spreading hatred in Karnataka.

He said this at the event of the 75th birthday celebrations of Congress leader Siddaramaiah at Davangere. Projecting a rare show of camaraderie between Siddaramaiah and the party’s Karnataka unit chief D.K. Shivakumar, Rahul also called for unity among leaders to bring the party back to power in the 2013 polls.

The mega birthday bash of 75-year-old Siddaramaiah has been seen as a public show of strength of the former Karnataka CM. Political observers say that it was organised to send a strong message to his rival Shivakumar, another chief ministerial aspirant.

KPCC President D. K. Shivakumar with Leader of Opposition in Karnataka Assembly and Congress leader Siddaramaiah, party leader Rahul Gandhi, KC Venugopal during the birthday celebrations. ANI

However, Rahul tried to strike a balancing note to bring together all factions. “Today, I was happy to see Siddaramaiah and D K Shivakumar hugging each other on the stage.”

He further said, “I don’t usually attend birthday celebrations. I have come here because I share a special bond with Siddaramaiah. Not only do I like him as a person, but I also share his views. I share his compassion for the poor and the weak.” .

Lauding Siddaramaiah for having a vision for Karnataka, Rahul Gandhi appreciated him for the way the former Chief Minister ran the government in the state.“I also appreciate how he ran the government of Karnataka. He gave direction to the people of Karnataka. He had a vision for Karnataka. It was premised on the idea of fairness for all. That’s completely different from what we see today in the BJP government,” said the Congress MP.

He further said, “While the Congress government united the people and created harmony in the state, the BJP is dividing people and spreading hatred in this beautiful state,” he said.

“We believe in the culture, the language, and the tradition of Karnataka.

For us, your language, culture, and history are fundamental for the future of India because we believe that all the languages, histories, and cultures make India. BJP wants to impose one idea on top of Karnataka. They want to colonize Karnataka. We want to help Karnataka to develop. We want the weaker people of Karnataka to become strong,” he added.