Ridiculous to blame BJP for developments in Karnataka: BJP leader Ram Madhav

Jammu, Jul 8: BJP leader Ram Madhav on Monday dismissed charges that his party engineered defections in Karnataka leaving the Congress-JD(S) government struggling to survive, but said they are keeping a watch on the developments in the southern state.

The Congress-JD (S) government in Karnataka has plunged into a crisis after 13 lawmakers of the alliance submitted their resignation to the Speaker.

Madhav took a jibe on the spate of resignation within the Congress as well, wondering as to who they are sending their resignation letters to as Rahul Gandhi has already stepped down as party president. 12 Karnataka legislators -- nine from the Congress and three from the JD(S) -- resigned on Saturday, while Congress MLA Anand Singh had put in is papers on July 1.

"Everybody knows whatever is happening in Karnataka is because of the ambitions of certain leaders of their own parties. It is they who are engineering dissent within their party. "We are not doing anything there...we are just watching (the developments). It is they who are actually running the coalition, which was (anyway) against the mandate of the people. They come together and tried to run it and today they are fighting among themselves. To blame the BJP is ridiculous," Madhav said.

The BJP national general secretary was here to welcome in the party fold Mohammad Iqbal Malik, a leader from Darhal area of Rajouri who quit the Congress recently. Malik joined the BJP at its headquarters with his dozens of supporters including party activists, sarpanches and panches. In his address to the new entrants into the BJP, Madhav said everyday people can see newspaper headlines about resignation of Congress leaders.

In an apparent reference to Jyotiraditya Scindia and Milind Deora's resignation from their posts in the Congress, he said, "The youth leader from Madhya Pradesh and Mumbai submitted their resignations. But whom did they send their resignation letters to? Gandhi has already resigned from his post and is sitting at home."

While Scindia resigned as AICC general secretary for Western Uttar Pradesh, Deora quit as Mumbai Congress chief -- both taking moral responsibility for the party's poor electoral show in their respective areas. "This is the condition of the party (Congress). They are 'Bhagwan ke Bharose' (on God's mercy)," Madhav said, adding nothing good is expected from the party for the country. "It will become history very soon.

The future in the country belongs only to the BJP." "The BJP is a big hope for all the people who love this country and want its development. The BJP under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi is the only party which can fulfil aspirations of all sections of the society," he said.

Madhav said the doors of his party are open to all good thinking politicians who want development of their areas. "We are for equitable development of all the three regions of the state: Jammu, Ladakh and Kashmir. Though Jammu faced discrimination...we are sure that the next government in the state would be of the BJP and Jammu will get justice," he said.

On anti-India banners attached to an aircraft being displayed over a cricket stadium in England during a World Cup match between India and Sri Lanka on Saturday, Madhav said Pakistani nationals were behind it.

"The Hindu minority in Kashmir faced genocide at the behest of Pakistan and today the same people (Pakistanis) are indulging in propaganda in London and other places. The entire world knows the truth," he said.

PTI