Not a scapegoat, says Meira Kumar in Karnataka

Reacting to Dalit leader Ramdas Athawale's comment that she is being used as a scapegoat by the Opposition in the July 17 presidential election, Meira Kumar said that anyone fighting for an ideology cannot be called a scapegoat.

 “Anybody fighting for an ideology and appealing to the voice of conscience cannot be a scapegoat. I am a fighter and I will fight. I am sure many will join me in this fight,” Meira Kumar said.

In Karnataka to woo supporters for the Presidential polls, former Lok Sabha speaker Meira Kumar on Saturday said she was not going to end up a “scapegoat” in the upcoming election as she was fighting for an ideology. Kumar, who is pitted against the NDA’s candidate Ram Nath Kovind, met Congress legislators in Bengaluru on Saturday and Janata Dal (Secular) president H D Deve Gowda at the airport to seek support.
Reacting to a suggestion by minister in the NDA government and Dalit leader Ramdas Athawale that she is being used as a scapegoat by the Opposition in the July 17 presidential election, Kumar said that anyone fighting for an ideology cannot be called a scapegoat.
“Anybody fighting for an ideology and appealing to the voice of conscience cannot be a scapegoat. I am a fighter and I will fight. I am sure many will join me in this fight,” she said. “People tell me that I do not have the numbers. If I do not have the numbers, why don’t you round up the figures and declare the results? Why hold elections?” Kumar said.
“I am carrying forward the values and principles that are sacred to most of my countrymen and women. Someone has to take them up,”’ she said. “When the contest is between me and Kovind, our caste is being discussed and there is no other talk. Where are we heading?” she asked.