Bengaluru, Aug 16: In an embarrassment to the ruling BJP government in Karnataka, the audio recording of a conversation of a cabinet minister has gone viral, where he says that the state is functioning without a government and is instead being stage-managed. However, Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai on Tuesday attempted to downplay the issue by stating that the statement was given by the minister in a different context.
The audio clip containing the alleged conversation of Law Minister J.C. Madhuswamy was first highlighted by the Congress while taking jibes at the BJP government on social media. Later, this incident threatened to turn into a crisis as Horticulture Minister N. Munirathna asked Madhuswamy to submit his resignation. Bommai said that there is no need for anyone to give a wrong picture of the statement made by Madhuswamy.
“The minister has stated it in a different context,” the Chief Minister added. “I have spoken to him but there is no need for the wrong portrayal. It was spoken three months ago in a program related to the cooperative department. Everything is fine within the government. There is no crisis as such,” Bommai said. The audio clip contains the alleged conversation between Madhuswamy and social worker Bhaskar where the latter talks about cooperative bank officials demanding Rs 1,300 for renewing the Rs 50,000 loan availed by farmers.
Madhuswamy agrees with the charge and said that despite the matter being brought to the notice of Cooperatives Minister S.T. Somashekar, nothing much has changed on the ground.
