Kumaraswamy takes dig at Modi for 'seeking votes' on work of scientists

Karnataka Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy Wednesday questioned whether the success of the A-SAT was a major achievement of the Modi government and charged the Prime Minister with seeking votes "using the works done by someone else." "Is it a major achievement (of Modi government)? There is a team of scientists in the country specifically for that purpose. They do their job in a routine manner, irrespective of whichever government is in power. So using somebody else's work, should anyone seek votes? It is the contribution of citizens who are experts in some specialised fields," the chief minister said.

India Wednesday shot down a satellite revolving at the low earth orbit, thereby joining the league of developed nations which have achieved this feat, about which the prime minister made the announcement in his televised address to the nation. In an apparent bid to downplay the achievement, Kumaraswamy said "Did Narendra Modi shoot the anti-satellite? It is the scientists who made it possible."

Mocking Modi, Kumaraswamy told reporters in Bengaluru that the prime minister made everyone wait for half-an-hour, so much so that everybody was in tension, whether they were in the bathroom, office or bus stand.

Turning to journalists, he said the media needs such stories to attribute every achievement to Modi. "You need this (such stories). This is an era where achievements started 50 years ago is projected as if something is done now by Modi," the chief minister said. The Karnataka Pradesh Congress president Dinesh Gundu Rao credited scientists and engineers at IISc, DRDO and ISRO for the achievement.

"It is indeed a matter of pride. Modi says today that India has emerged as a space superpower, but I would like to tell him that India became space superpower long back, not today. Chandrayaan and Mangal Yaan and many other satellites were launched long back. The credit should go to our scientists and engineers at IISc, ISRO and DRDO," Rao told reporters in Bengaluru.

Congress strongman and former Karnataka chief minister Siddaramaiah gave credit to successive Prime Ministers and scientists for the development of A-SAT. He tweeted; "Years of groundwork, persistent efforts, incremental technological advancements & the vision of all the Prime ministers, scientists & other stakeholders have now yielded results."