Vote for Umesh Meti, Siddaramaiah appeals to Bagalkot voters

“Vote for Umesh Meti as if I am the candidate. The former MLA H.T. Meti was among my closest friends. If his soul is to rest in peace, then his son [Umesh Meti] should win this bypolls,” Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said in Bhagawati village of Bagalkot district on Monday.

He was campaigning for the party candidate.

The bypolls are being held to fill the seat that has fallen vacant after the demise of H.Y. Meti.

At campaign meetings in various villages on Monday, Mr. Siddaramaiah sought votes for Congress candidate.

He highlighted the character and reputation of H.Y. Meti as “a people’s leader who was accessible to all and took everyone along with him.”

“In contrast, BJP candidate Veeranna Charantimath has the exact opposite character. It is very difficult to meet him. He doesn’t allow any ordinary man to enter his house. Is such a person who maintains a distance from his voters eligible to be an MLA? I want all of you to reflect upon it,” he said.

“H.Y. Meti was a very simple and popular person. As you have noticed, his son Umesh Meti shares his father’s characteristics. If you vote for him, you will get an MLA who is easily approachable. Mr. Meti was not only a dear friend but he was also a fierce loyalist of the Congress,” he said.

“The Congress government in Karnataka is working hard to implement the agenda of all-round development . We have kept the promises we made to the people. But the BJP is spreading misinformation about our government. In fact, we have paid ₹24 000 crore of the ₹30 000 crore arrears that the BJP government left behind. In fact, they have gone to the extent of calling tenders and awarding contract even though there was no money in the Exchequer,” the Chief Minister claimed.

He said that despite being in power for several years at the Centre and in the State, the BJP has not completed the work of raising the Almatti dam to 524 m or provide proper compensation to farmers.

“Throughout their tenure, all the BJP leaders did was to divide society on communal and caste lines. They only did sloganeering. They did not do any development work,” he said.

“Work on the third phase of Almatti dam was approved by the River Water Tribunal and court, but the BJP government has not issued a gazette notification for 13 years now. The BJP, the party that Mr. Charantimath belongs to, did not release money for any of the irrigation projects of Karnataka, including the Upper Krishna Project. We have met the Prime Minister and the Union Irrigation Minister many times and appealed to them, but our appeal has not been fulfilled,” he said

“It is because of H.Y. Meti’s efforts that Bagalkot district is getting a government medical college. If you support Umesh Meti, it will strengthen my hands in making the dream come true,” he said.

Ministers R.B. Timmapur, Byrati Suresh, Shivanand Patil, party MLAs, leaders and local leaders were present.