Cong govt trying to make K’taka state of drunkards: BYV

Hubballi: BJP Karnataka state president BY Vijayendra on Sunday accused that in an attempt to mobilise revenue, the Siddaramaiah-led Congress govt is turning Karnataka into a state of drunkards, claiming the administration raised excise targets and allowed unchecked liquor sales even in grocery stores in rural areas."You may not find a medical shop within 500m in our villages, but you will certainly find a liquor shop," Vijayendra said, adding, "It seems the Siddaramaiah govt took a vow to convert Karnataka into a state of drunkards just to fill its treasury."Addressing the media after the ‘Mann Ki Baat' programme of PM Narendra Modi at Bhairidevarkoppa in Hubballi, Vijayendra said the state govt was bankrupt and failed to initiate any new development projects in the last two-and-a-half-years. He alleged the govt increased excise targets to compensate for the financial drain caused by the guarantee schemes.Responding to the CM's visit to Hubballi to distribute houses to the poor, Vijayendra dismissed the event as a "drama". He said the housing projects were sanctioned and initiated during the BJP govt's tenure, under the former CM BS Yediyurappa.The Karnataka BJP president also accused the state govt of practising appeasement politics and ignoring Hindu victims of violence, alleging a double standard in distributing compensation by citing two separate cases.On police notices served to BJP workers regarding hate speech at Tarikeri, Vijayendra termed the govt's actions undemocratic. He alleged the govt brought in the hate speech bill during the Belagavi session of the legislature, to silence the opposition through intimidation.MLAs Arvind Bellad, Mahesh Tenginkai, mayor Jyoti Patil, deputy mayor Santosh Cahavan, BJP local unit president Tippanna Majjagi and Mahendra Koutal were present.