Nagendra, Janardhana Reddy trade charges in Assembly over Ballari clash

B.Nagendra
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Congress member and former Minister B. Nagendra and BJP member and former Minister G. Janardhana Reddy, both from Ballari, were involved in a heated exchange in the Legislative Assembly on Friday over remarks allegedly made by former Minister B. Sriramulu against Congress MLA Nara Bharath Reddy at a BJP rally held on January 17.

The verbal duel began when Mr. Nagendra, speaking on the motion of thanks to the Governor’s address, referred to Mr. Sriramulu’s reported statement at the rally that Mr. Bharath Reddy would be “searched and attacked” after the BJP returns to power in 2028.

Mr. Janardhana Reddy claimed Mr. Sriramulu had been misquoted and questioned Mr. Nagendra for defending Mr. Bharath Reddy, whose private gunman allegedly killed a Congress worker during a clash on January 1.

Mr. Janardhana Reddy said he was ready to submit video evidence of Mr. Sriramulu’s speech from the January 17 rally. Mr. Sriramulu had said if Mr. Bharath Reddy was not arrested now, he would be arrested after the BJP comes to power in 2028, he claimed.

Mr. Janardhana Reddy also objected to Mr. Nagendra’s remarks on “Ballari Republic,” alleging that the Congress leader was attempting to portray the district as being synonymous with illegal mining.

Escalating the attack, Mr. Janardhana Reddy accused Mr. Nagendra of “looting” ₹187 crore from the Karnataka Maharshi Valmiki Scheduled Tribe Development Corporation, and said that even “in 100 births” Mr. Nagendra could not match what Mr. Sriramulu had done for the welfare of the Valmiki community.

As the exchange intensified, Speaker U.T. Khader intervened and cautioned Mr. Nagendra against using “street-level language”, asking him to confine his speech to development issues in Ballari.

Mr. Nagendra said a probe into the January 1 incident was under way and expressed hope for an impartial investigation to ensure punishment for those responsible. He said his priority was to maintain peace in the district.

Mr. Nagendra also urged the Speaker to expunge certain remarks made by Mr. Janardhana Reddy on Thursday against Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar.