Congress 'digging pit' to oust Siddaramaiah: K'taka BJP

Bengaluru, July 7 (IANS) Karnataka BJP claimed on Monday that Congress is digging a pit for Chief Minister Siddaramaiah in the wake of the recent developments in the ruling party.

Karnataka Legislative Council Opposition Leader Chalavadi Narayanaswamy said that just as the Congress high command dug a “political pit” for President Mallikarjun Kharge, it is now doing the same for Chief Minister Siddaramaiah.

Narayanaswamy said the Congress High Command is resorting to various political strategies to remove Siddaramaiah from the post of Chief Minister.

He sarcastically said that the party had already dug a pit for Mallikarjun Kharge, taken him to Delhi, and sidelined him by making him a namesake president.

“Even though Kharge is the president of the AICC, whenever he speaks, he seems to refer to a different high command. Now, they’ve dug a pit for CM Siddaramaiah. It appears Siddaramaiah has understood the game plan of the AICC,” he added.

Meanwhile, Narayanaswamy reiterated his earlier claim that the Congress government in Karnataka is anti-Dalit and is systematically ruining the Dalit community.

He demanded that the government release a white paper on the justice it has delivered to officials during its tenure.

He also accused the government of misusing funds earmarked for Dalit welfare - specifically SCP (Scheduled Caste Sub-Plan) and TSP (Tribal Sub-Plan) funds - for loan guarantees, thereby denying Dalits their rightful benefits.

Responding to a question about CM's Economic Advisor Basavaraj Rayareddy’s remark, “Do you want roads or guarantees?”, Narayanaswamy said: “Rayareddy is effectively speaking on behalf of the Chief Minister. He is a financial expert, an advisor to the CM, and represents both the Congress party and the government’s voice. The underlying message here is: ‘We’ve given guarantees, so no one else should question us.’”

He accused the Chief Minister and Deputy Chief Minister of using Rayareddy to indirectly communicate what they could not say themselves.

He demanded a response from the leaders who often project themselves on TV as champions of Dalit causes. He reminded that B.R. Ambedkar had once said the Congress was like a burning house for Dalits and had urged them to leave the party.

“This proves beyond doubt that the Congress party is anti-Dalit,” he concluded.

Even as Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has denied being appointed by Congress as Chairperson of the party's National OBC Advisory Committee, the BJP has said this is a step towards ousting him from the post.

--IANS

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