Politicians in Karnataka – especially of the chief minister / former chief minister variety – appear to be in a one-upmanship game.
First, it was Yeddyurappa who got embroiled in all kinds of allegations of corruption, then it was Siddaramaiah who faced similar charges.
First, it was Siddaramaiah who was roasted for his “gifted” Hublot watch (approx. Rs 70 lakh), now its Yeddyurappa’s turn to be hauled over the coals for his “gifted” Land cruiser (aprox Rs 1 crore).
(Read about Siddaramaiah’s watch here.)
Yeddyurappa too has said that the Toyota Land Cruiser Prado was “gifted” to him. He said his friend and former industries minister and sugar baron Murugesh Nirani had given it to him for use during his tenure as the state BJP president. To add icing to the cake, he apparently wants to use it to tour the drought-affected districts of north Karnataka. However, Yeddyurappa has denied this.
FYI Fact No 1: There’s a severe scarcity of drinking water in some places in north Karnataka and other drought related distress.
FYI Fact No 2: Over 1,000 farmers have killed themselves since April 1, 2015.
Although the BJP’s probably glad to have Yeddy back at the helm, he’s probably more popular with the Congress party right now.
Here’s what people had to say:
Congress spokesperson Brijesh Kalappa:
Ultra honest Yeddyurappa got himself this Car worth over a Crore to see farmers dying during Kar's severest drought. pic.twitter.com/Eb1Il8bZl9
— Brijesh Kalappa (@brijeshkalappa) April 15, 2016
#Yeddyurappa starts preparing for 2018 assembly election with a #LANDCRUISER. By 2018 he might have a jet. #NarendraModi's acche din?
— Abraham (@abb_n2005) April 15, 2016
One mans #Hublot is another man's #LandCruiser.
At the time of writing, reports were coming in that Yeddyurappa was considering returning the "gift".