Karnataka Assembly Election 2018: Amit Shah attacks Siddaramaiah, says Congress and corruption are 'like fish and water'

Stepping up his attacks against the Congress government in Karnataka, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) president Amit Shah on Saturday likened Congress and corruption to fish and water, and said that Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has worsened things in the state.

Speaking at a press conference in Mysuru as part of his two-day visit to the region, Shah said the public is disappointed with the state government, with one of the main issues being corruption.

"Across Karnataka, wherever I went, people want to replace Siddaramaiah and the Congress government in the state," he said. He also expressed confidence in the BJP's victory in the upcoming Assembly election in the state.

File image of BJP president Amit Shah. PTI

Shah claimed there is a "storm of corruption" in the state. "If the Congress comes back to power, this storm will turn into a tsunami," he predicted. He also called the Karnataka government a "corruption ATM". "In short, the Karnataka government is a corruption ATM for the Congress party," he said.

In BJP-ruled states of India, Shah said, basic necessities like water and electricity reach people's homes, and accused Siddaramaiah of not ensuring state revenues reach the rural masses. "IT revenue generated in Bengaluru is not percolating to the rural masses in the state. Implementation of central schemes is the weakest in Karnataka and development indicators have been showing a downward trend," Shah said.

The BJP president also touched upon the issue of farmer suicides in the state and criticised Siddaramaiah for calling it a "conspiracy". "Why would anybody give up their lives for a conspiracy? It is the most insensitive remark I've heard," he said.

Shah also dismissed the JD(S) as a contender, saying it won't be able to form a government in Karnataka. "JD(S) is not in a position to form government. It cannot bring about change, as it is limited to certain pockets in the region," he said.

Shah arrived in Mysuru on Friday for a two-day tour of the region. He began his tour of the old Mysuru region on Friday, covering the districts of Mysuru and Chamarajanagara, where BJP had not won even a single seat in the previous election.

He will interact with silk farmers at Channapatna in Ramanagara district and visit Mandya district as well on Saturday. He will also be visiting the Sri Cheluvanarayanaswamy temple in Melukote in Mandya.

On Friday, Shah claimed that Siddaramaiah and the JD(S) will get the "biggest shock of their lives" from the old Mysuru region in the upcoming polls. He said the BJP, if voted to power, would make efforts to hunt down the killers of RSS and BJP workers in Karnataka, and hand out severest of punishments to them.

"I would like to tell the people of the state that Siddaramaiah's time has come to an end. Soon after the BJP forms the next government under Yeddyurappa's leadership, it will make all efforts to hunt down the killers (of RSS and BJP workers) from any corner of the world," he said.

With inputs from PTI