Krishna Byre Gowda turns tables on Opposition with Manmohan Singh reference

Greater Bengaluru Development Minister Krishna Byre Gowda sought to turn the Opposition’s criticism of the State government’s handling of the drought into a debate over the Centre’s record of providing disaster assistance to Karnataka.

Responding to Opposition members in the Legislative Council who questioned the State government’s relief measures, Mr. Byre Gowda recalled the response of then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to the State’s distress during the floods in 2009.

He said the Prime Minister had visited flood-affected areas of Karnataka and announced ₹1,000 crore in assistance while leaving. Mr. Byre Gowda contrasted this with the present situation and questioned whether the Prime Minister or Union Ministers had visited Karnataka to assess the current drought conditions.

He also referred to the farm loan waiver announced by the Manmohan Singh government in 2008, putting the figure at ₹72,000 crore, and challenged the Opposition to cite a comparable farm loan waiver by the Union government in recent years.

The Opposition disputed the Minister’s figures and cited the amounts sought and received by Karnataka during earlier disasters.

Mr. Byre Gowda maintained that the State had repeatedly sought Central assistance and alleged that Karnataka had faced delays and shortfall in receiving relief.