Bengaluru, (DHNS): JD(S) leader H D Kumaraswamy on Tuesday said that BJP state president B S Yeddyurappa was lying about releasing 

Rs 100 crore at one go for the Kalasa-Banduri canal project, when he was at the helm.

Speaking to reporters here, Kumaraswamy said that Yeddyurappa, as chief minister, over a period of four years (2008-2011), had released only Rs 69 crore, and not Rs 100 crore as he had claimed.

In fact, from 2005 till date, the total amount set aside for the project was around Rs 200 crore he said. "In 2005-06, Rs one crore was allocated, and Rs 57 lakh was spent while in 2006-07, Rs 42 lakh was utilised out of the Rs one crore allocated. In the year 2007-08, Rs 25 crore was allocated, but only Rs 2.38 crore was spent; while in 2008-09, Rs 12 crore was spent."

In 2009-10, Rs 36 crore was spent, he said, adding that Yeddyurappa was exaggerating the amount utilised. "Where is the question of Yeddyurappa as deputy chief minister releasing Rs 100 crore during the JD(S)-BJP coalition? As deputy chief minister and chief minister, he has only sanctioned Rs 69 crore," said Kumaraswamy.

While Rs 30 crore had been set aside for the project during the D V Sadananda Gowda regime (2011-12), Rs 19.80 crore was spent when Jagadish Shettar was the chief minister (2012-13). The Siddaramaiah government had spent Rs 81.27 crore ever since it came to power, till date, he said.

'Scared of Modi

Kumaraswamy said that the state BJP leaders including the 17 BJP Lok Sabha MPs were responsible for the present fiasco over the Mahadayi dispute.

"The BJP leaders are so useless that they failed to even impress upon the prime minister to intervene and settle the matter. JD(S) supremo H D Deve Gowda was the one who took the initiative. The BJP leaders are scared to stand before Modi. They should stop attacking the JD(S) unnecessarily," he added.