DV Sadananda Gowda gets a hero’s welcome

Former chief minister DV Sadananda Gowda got a rousing welcome on visiting his hometown for the first time since vacating his position. The reception turned him emotional and had him pouring his heart out on his ouster.

“I see no difference between the reception you gave me today, and when I had arrived here 11 months ago after becoming the chief minister. I salute your judgment and love for me,” a visibly overwhelmed Gowda said.

He was indeed given a hero’s welcome. The gathering was jubilant to see him and had the same enthusiasm it had when he had come to Puttur shortly after assuming the chief minister’s post. Similar festivities, similar poojas, similar intensity among people, showers of praise and huge crowds at the reception hall marked the welcome. In fact, the convoy of vehicles that brought him to Puttur from Uppinangady was a kilometre longer than what it was when he had come here after becoming the CM.

Nevertheless, the sadness of his losing power was all-pervading. Behind the smiling faces, there was pain and anger, but little did they show it. For, they knew that their son of soil had won despite being forced to resign. They were also proud that after three years of rut, Gowda had given the BJP government a clean image for the last 11 months.

“You cannot reason out what made the party shunt me out of chief minister’s post, but I am supremely happy. When I met LK Advani and other senior leaders, seeking their early clearance of my resignation letter, Advani told me that this was the saddest day of his political life as he had to act against his own conscience and let me go,” Gowda said.

“This shows how much they valued my contribution to the party. After that remark from Advani, I felt assured and the loss of the chair does not matter anymore,” he said, adding that the weight of expectations after he had taken over as CM had unnerved him initially. He mentioned the pro-people initiatives he had taken, such as Sakala.

Then, he said he had set an example for his cabinet colleagues by putting his all three offices under surveillance cameras, whose uncut footage can be seen on Internet. Also, he mentioned that a sum of Rs51 crore was distributed to the needy from the CM’s relief fund in less than 10 months, claiming that it was a record of sorts.

‘Here’s why I quit’

Gowda said many of his supporters had asked him why he agreed to quit the chief minister’s post so easily. He said half of the state (123 taluks) was reeling under one of the most severe droughts and in such a situation, he could not bring himself to get involved in tussle for power, as it would have meant that the drought-relief work would have taken a backseat.

“If I too got into the struggle for retaining my chair, I would have done a great disservice to the people and put my party under a shroud of suspicion. This struggle would have also jeopardised the government machinery, which could otherwise be fighting the drought instead,” he said.

Displaying a letter of appreciation written by the chief secretary to him about the 11 months of his administration, Gowda said: “This certifies that my government had done well to reach out to the people, give them corruption-free, transparent and efficient, pro-people administration, which I will cherish.”