Bengaluru, Dec 3 (IANS) The act of relishing of ‘naatikoli saaru’ (chicken gravy dish) along with idlis during the breakfast meeting by Chief Minister Siddaramaiah at the residence of Deputy Chief Minister and State Congress President D.K. Shivakumar has sparked a row following the Karnataka BJP unit raising objections for having chicken on the sacred occasion of Hanuman Jayanti.

Addressing a press conference in Bengaluru, the Leader of the Opposition in the Assembly, R. Ashoka, charged on Tuesday, “While Hanuman Jayanti was being celebrated across the state on Tuesday, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah was enjoying ‘naatikoli saaru’ at Sadashivanagar residence of Dy CM Shivakumar. Earlier too, he had consumed meat before visiting the Hindu pilgrimage centre Dharmasthala.”

“A few days ago, a breakfast meeting was held at Siddaramaiah’s residence, and now it has taken place at D.K. Shivakumar’s residence. Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi and Venugopal have directed this drama. Siddaramaiah’s actions have hurt the sentiments of Hanuman devotees,” he stated.

“Lord Hanuman was born in Kishkinda, located in the Ballari region of Karnataka. Today, it is a tradition for Hanuman devotees to wear Hanuma malas and observe fasting. They take vows, visit Hanuman temples, have darshan of the deity, and thereafter remove the malas. I too visited two Hanuman temples this morning and celebrated Hanuman Jayanti,” Ashoka stated.

“I convey my wishes to all Hanuman devotees across the state. But unfortunately, at the residence of Deputy Chief Minister Shivakumar, a country chicken was slaughtered in Kanakapura, his native place. Using that slaughtered chicken, gravy and biryani were prepared. CM Siddaramaiah, as it is, does not care about Hindu sentiments. I received hundreds of calls expressing displeasure over the consumption of ‘naatikoli saaru’ on the occasion of Hanuman Jayanti,” Ashoka said.

“They asked me to question this, and that is why I am raising the matter. There are lakhs of devotees of Lord Hanuman across the state. Everyone reveres Hanuman, and every village in Karnataka has a dedicated Hanuman temple,” he stated.

Ashoka criticised that while the Congress government has failed to address farmers’ problems and has not repaired potholes, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar have held a breakfast meeting only to resolve their differences.

Ashoka added, “D.K. Shivakumar had once said he would snatch power by force. But now he is busy having breakfast. Meanwhile, G. Parameshwara has spoken out in great pain. Over 580 people have died in pothole-related accidents in the state in the last 10 months. Had the time spent on these breakfast meetings been used to fill potholes, innocent lives could have been saved.”

He said that the issue of sugarcane price has not been resolved. The problems at the maize procurement centres remain unresolved. No breakfast meeting has been held on these issues.

“But they have held a breakfast meeting only to settle internal disputes. The government has lost the trust of Anganwadi workers, farmers, entrepreneurs and Dalits.”

He further said, like wild-card entries in Bigg Boss reality show, Ministers Satish Jarkiholi and G. Parameshwara are waiting to become Chief Minister under the Dalit quota.

“The entire government has turned into a reality show. Instead of holding such meetings, if the government had cleared the pending bill of Rs 12 crore for the repair of the Tungabhadra reservoir gates, farmers would have received irrigation water. We will raise this issue and fight on behalf of farmers during the Assembly session.”

He stated that the government has no money not only for the development of North Karnataka, but for any development.

“We will question whether Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has fulfilled the promises he made during the last Belagavi session. In Dharmasthala, the Congress government gave biryani to the man who brought the skull. But they have still not been able to prove it,” Ashoka alleged.

He also said that the Uttar Pradesh MP who criticised Bengaluru should tighten his security. “Otherwise, D.K. Shivakumar will threaten him, too. They have already threatened industrialists,” he alleged.

Earlier in the day, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah relished idlis and ‘natikoli saaru’ (a chicken gravy dish) during a breakfast meeting at the residence of Dy CM and state Congress President D.K. Shivakumar.

–IANS

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