Madikeri: While many people have expressed their dissatisfaction about Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy (HDK) for not sanctioning any funds to Kodagu in his Budget, this little boy from Yemmemadu village near Napoklu takes the cake. In a video that has gone viral, the boy vents his anger at the CM and at the same time highlights how Kodagu is ravaged by rain and how man-animal conflict has made lives miserable in this tiny district.

In the video, the Class 8 student, Kallira Fateh, son of Kallira Ummar and Rukya, says the district which has given River Cauvery to Mysuru, Mandya, Bengaluru and Tamil Nadu has got nothing from Kumaraswamy.   

Hailing from a farming and daily wager family, Fateh, holding an umbrella, is seen pleading with the CM to provide relief to the rain-affected Kodagu farmers. Taking a dig at the Chief Minister for ‘neglecting’ Kodagu district in the Budget, Fateh said, “Mysuru, Mandya and half of Tamil Nadu get water, if it rains in Kodagu district. But the unrelenting rain has destroyed coffee, pepper, areca and paddy crops in Kodagu.”

“The wild elephant menace is on the rise in Kutta, Birunani, Balele and Ponnampet because of which daily wagers and agriculture farmers fear to venture out of their houses. The rain-battered Kodagu-Kerala Road has become non-motorable. “Who should people approach to get their problems addressed? It is you (CM), who else,” he said.

He continued, “Kumaraswamy has meted out injustice to Kodagu by not sanctioning grants to Kodagu and added that the CM should treat all districts equally.”

The boy then addressed BJP State President B.S. Yeddyurappa to impress upon Prime Minister Narendra Modi to announce compensation for the distressed farmers.

“Modiji is Prime Minister for 130 crore people of the country. He should treat people of all religions and castes on equal footing. This holds good for the CM too,” Fateh said.

The video went viral and reached the CM too. Kumaraswamy told reporters in Bengaluru that since Independence, many rulers have come. “Why am I being targeted, that too after taking charge just two months ago? I know about the problems faced by people of Kodagu. I will visit Kodagu and stay there for two days and hear the grievances of people and solve their problems,” he said. Fateh’s father Umar said his son was pained by the destruction of standing crops on 3,500 acres of paddy fields in the village.

“Our paddy field has been waterlogged for the past 13 days. No official or people’s representative visited our area. In our village, we get electricity only for six months a year. All this upset him,” he said. “I’m happy that the State Government and the CM have responded to our demands,” he said.