Bangalore:
BJP strongman BS Yeddyurappa on Tuesday hit back at former Chief Minister DV Sadananda Gowda for endorsing BJP leader L K Advani's comments on the state of affairs in Karnataka BJP unit.
"Gowda is a former chief minister and I believe he will issue statements with a sense of responsibility. He should come out in the open and talk about corruption, if any, during my tenure as Chief Minister," Mr Yeddyurappa told reporters here.
Endorsing Mr Advani's comments on BJP "bungling" in Karnataka, Mr Gowda had said there were no instances of corruption during his tenure as Chief Minister and he had given clean governance.
Mr Yeddyurappa said because of such statements a wrong message is reaching Mr Advani. "I would like to tell Gowda that Advani had appreciated my work as a chief minister, but now the opinion has changed," he said.
Against this backdrop, Mr Yeddyurappa said, he would meet Gowda and clear doubts on BJP "bungling" during his chief ministerial tenure. He said he would also meet Mr Advani and place the facts before him and clear the air.
Mr Advani had stated in his blog, "... so far as the BJP is concerned, the bungling in Karnataka notwithstanding, all recent public opinion surveys clearly reveal that the principal beneficiary of the Congress party's fast-eroding reputation continues to be the BJP."
Mr Advani has been critical of Mr Yeddyurappa ever since the Lokayukta indicted the former chief minister in the report on illegal mining in the State.