Prime Minister Narendra Modi was criticised by BJP MLA Bsanagouda Patil Yatnal on Tuesday for alleged apathy towards Karnataka over issuing flood relief funds from the union government.
The MLA's criticism of the Prime Minister comes after he discussed the flood situation in Bihar with the Chief Minister of the state Nitish Kumar and said the central government is "ready to provide all possible help.”
Spoke to Bihar CM @NitishKumar Ji regarding the flood situation in parts of the state. Agencies are working with local administration to assist the affected. Centre stands ready to provide all possible further assistance that may be required.
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) September 30, 2019
“Even after the state suffered devastating floods, Modi didn’t tweet for us, but he did for the people of Bihar. People will ask if Modi tweeted for Bihar just because elections are approaching there. Is this what people get for voting the BJP? The party should take it seriously. Or else, it will lose its ground in south India,” Yatnal said as per Deccan Herald.
“You cannot become a leader just because you speak a smattering of English, neither can you build the party by sitting in an air-conditioned room,” Yatnal said, as per Times of India. He further defended CM Yediyurappa from criticism stating that the centre is targeting the Chief Minister by not releasing funds.
It has been almost two months since heavy rainfall caused devastating floods and landslides in Karnataka. The floods affected 21 of the 30 districts in the state and displaced more than 4 lakh people. In particular, the floods affected the coastal, northern and Malnad regions of the state while landslides disrupted road and rail traffic in the Malnad region.
The lack of flood relief measures released for the state was also criticised by Congress and JD(S) leaders on Tuesday.
In response, the office of Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman took to social media to state that an Inter-ministerial Central Team (IMCT) assessed the damage caused by the rains and floods in Karnataka at the end of August and that the report is yet to be finalised.
The state government had earlier estimated the damage to crops and infrastructure (both public and private) due to the heavy rains at Rs 3,845.11 crore and sought relief funds from the union government.