Deve Gowda to lead protest match over flood relief aid

Former prime minister H D Deve Gowda reaffirmed on Monday that he would lead a march from Freedom Park to Vidhana Soudha, the State Secretariat, on October 10 against the Centre over flood relief assistance.

The JD(S) supremo rued that the State government had put forth a demand of Rs 35,000 crore but the Centre released only Rs 1,200 crore, which will not serve the purpose.

"The assembly session would start on October 10. We would take out a march from Gandhi Statue to Freedom Park against the backdrop of Centres insensitivity towards the flood victims," Gowda told reporters at Kaiwara in Chikkaballapura district.

"I will walk from Gandhi Statue to Freedom park. All our leaders and the flood-hit people will take part in the rally," he said, adding his party would stage demonstrations inside and outside parliament and the Karnataka assembly.

Deve Gowda's son and former chief minister H D Kumaraswamy too had flayea the Centre for releasing only Rs 1,200 crore.

The JD(S) as well as Congress have been alleging that the Centre was indifferent towards the flood victims in Karnataka. Both the parties have been staging protests and demonstrations in various parts of the state.

The floods in August had wreaked havoc in Karnataka as 22 out of 30 districts were badly affected.

As many as 84 people were killed in August alone due to floods while 1.5 lakh houses damaged and crops destroyed with more than 5.5 lakh hectares coming under a sheet of water.