"Referring To BJP": Siddaramaiah U-Turn After "Prostitute" Remark On JDS

Siddaramaiah said the remark was a very common proverb in Mysuru (File)

Congress leader Siddaramaiah has issued a clarification for an objectionable comment against his party's estranged ally Janata Dal Secular, saying he was referring to the BJP. The remark -- in which he had compared the party with a "prostitute"-- has triggered a fresh row between the two parties, barely days after they blamed each other for the drubbing in the recent national election.

Earlier this month, HD Deve Gowda, the JDS chief, said the Congress had been "wrong" in making his son, HD Kumaraswamy, the Chief Minister without consulting Siddaramaiah. Reacting to the comment, the Congress leader blamed his allies for the Lok Sabha polls defeat.

On Friday, in response to a query on the JDS' attack against him, he had uttered a Kannada proverb. "Incapable of dancing, a prostitute called the dance floor uneven," he said.

After his remark sparked a controversy, with both the JDS and BJP slamming him, he issued a clarification.

 "I was referring to the BJP. It is a very common proverb in the rural areas around Mysuru. Those who cannot run the government call the floor uneven," he was quoted by news agency PTI as saying.

JDS leader Ramesh Babu has slammed the leader for his comment. "Siddaramaiah's statement in Mysuru reflects on his conduct. If a leader loses control over his language, it shows his frustration.

"JDS is like paradise for those who love it. It doesn't affect it if someone makes a hue and cry against it. It is fact that during the coalition government both Congress and the JDS had danced together," he tweeted.

The fragile Congress-JDS alliance collapsed in June after it failed a trust vote brought about by the resignations of 16 of its lawmakers. The development took place a month after the alliance could win only two of the 28 Lok Sabha seats in Karnataka.

With inputs from PTI