As Karnataka is crucial for BJP in its run up to Assembly election, the party has met with a major controversy giving a weapon to the ruling Congress led by Chief Minister Karnataka. BJP which is banking on Dalit unity has started a a programme called ‘walk to Dalit house’ where in the BJP leaders led by its president BS Yeddyurappa and others went to a Dalit house in Tumkur had breakfast. The gluing media found out that the breakfast was brought in from a hotel and became a major political controversy.
The ruling Congress ridiculed BJP and said the food was brought from a hotel and it was not prepared by the Dalit family. Chief Minister Siddaramaiah was quick to react and ridiculed the BJP and blamed Yeddyurappa for the gimmick. He said the BJP was not at all concerned about Dalits and it is a gimmick and they can’t win away Dalits like this. He also said the Union Government has not done anything for the oppressed people.
Siddaramaiah accused, Yeddyurappa, a lingayat and a dominant community leader, that the BJP leader was making politics by visiting Dalit homes while he wanted them just for votes but had no true concern for them.
KPCC President Parames-
hwara said the BJP leaders should be ashamed of themselves for reportedly eating idlis and vadas brought from a local hotel at the house of a Dalit in Gubbi taluk of Tumakuru district.
Meanwhile, Yeddyurappa camedown heavily on the criticism by the Congress and the Chief Minister by saying it was a conspiracy to destabilise BJP’s Dalit consolidation.
“I had food in Dalit homes and I am very happy to mingle with people who have been oppressed by the Congress ruled Governments for over 60 years and kept them as ‘vote bank’ and not made enough efforts to uplift them. Even today, I visited a Dalit family in Bagalkot and had food with them,” he said in a statement on Monday.
However, after the visit to Hanumantharayappa’s house (Dalit) in Chitradurga, BJP media in-charge Dagge Shivap-
rakash clarified that as Yeddy-
urappa liked idli and vada, it was brought from a hotel. However, he had veg pulav that was prepared at the Dalit’s home.