Bengaluru, Feb 16: Karnataka Higher Education Minister Dr C N Ashwath Narayan, who triggered controversy by urging people to ‘finish off’ Congress leader Siddaramaiah, expressed a so called regret in the Legislative Assembly on Thursday.
“I regret the statements made if it has hurt [Opposition leader] Siddaramaiah,” the minister said, adding, “I don’t have any personal differences with him. The differences are political and ideological.”
While addressing a party workers’ meeting at Mandya on Monday, Ashwath Narayan said if the BJP loses the upcoming Karnataka Assembly elections then Siddaramiah, who admires Tipu, will come to power. “Do you want Tipu or Savarkar? Where should we send this Tipu Sultan? What did Uri Gowda Nanje Gowda do? You should finish him off the same way?” he said.
Even though Tipu Sultan was martyred in the battle field fighting against the British, a contentious new play “Tippu Nijakanasugalu” by Hindutva writer Addanda C. Cariappa, goes on to claim that Sultan was killed by two Vokkaliga chieftains Uri Gowda and Nanje Gowda. Historians have strongly condemned the baseless claim.
On his part, Siddaramaiah responded saying he respected Tipu, Kittur Rani Chennamma, Sangolli Rayanna and the like. “I have humanity. I love Hindus, I love Muslims, I love Christians, (and) I love Sikhs. I love everyone,” he said.
Again on Thursday morning, in a series of tweets about the remarks, Siddaramaiah asked the minister to “get the gun yourself”. Urging the BJP government to sack him from the Cabinet and arrest him, the former chief minister said lack of action would mean that the BJP was in agreement with the appeal to finish him off.
“Higher Education Minister @drashwathcn has appealed people to kill me like how Tipu was killed. Aswath Narayan, Why are you trying to instigate people? Get the gun yourself,” he said in a tweet.
“I am not surprised by @drashwathcn’s call to kill me. How can we expect love & friendship from the leaders of the party that worships the murderer of Mahatma Gandhi?” Siddaramaiah asked.
In another tweet, he said It is surprising that no action has been taken against a minister who has openly appealed to people to kill. “This shows that Chief Minister of Karnataka Basavaraj Bommai, Home Minister Araga Jnanendra and their incompetent cabinet is sleeping and is in agreement with Ashwath Narayan.”
Demanding the sacking and arrest of Ashwath Narayan, Siddaramaiah said, “If no action is taken, it only means that BJP is in agreement with the appeal or they think Ashwath Narayan has become ‘Mentally Unstable’.
“I know Kannadigas are enraged by mentally unstable Ashwath Narayan’s appeal to kill me, but I request everyone not to harm him,” he said.
Wondering whether “Gujarat BJP culture crept into Karnataka BJP as well”, he asked whether Prime Minister Narendra Modi will “be silent even now just like he how he was silent in 2002?”
The Karnataka minister’s remarks came the same day as that of BJP state president Nalin Kumar Kateel, who asked people to chase away those supporting Tipu “to the forest” as “only those who perform bhajans of Ram” should remain “in this land”.
Kateel, while speaking at a rally at Yelburga in Koppal district, asked people to take a pledge and decide “whether you want the offspring of Tipu, Ram devotees or Anjaneya devotees in this land… Those who love Tipu should not remain in this land and only those who perform bhajans of Ram should”.
Comments
Add new comment