‘For Kannadigas’: Siddaramaiah invites all state MPs to Delhi protest; BJP in a fix

After successfully drawing attention to the “injustice” in the Centre’s allocation of funds for Karnataka, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has pulled off another strategic masterstroke to embarrass the BJP ahead of the Lok Sabha polls.

In an astute move, he has officially invited all state representatives in the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha, including Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, fellow Union minister Pralhad Joshi, and Union Ministers of State Rajeev Chandrasekhar, Shobha Karandlaje, and A Narayanaswamy to join the protest at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar against the “injustice” being done to the state.

Former Prime Minister and national president of the Janata Dal (Secular) HD Deve Gowda is also among the invitees.

Letter politics

Of the 28 Lok Sabha MPs representing Karnataka, 25 are from the BJP. Siddaramaiah has officially written separate letters to all MPs, including those from the BJP and the JD(S), inviting them to participate in the protest on Wednesday (February 7), stating, “Being a responsible people’s representative, you know this issue and I request you to participate in the protest.”

Siddaramaiah has accused the Narendra Modi government of doing injustice to Karnataka in fund allocation, despite the state ranking second nationally in taxation gains. Even though BJP leaders attempted to play down the issue, the “letter politics” seems to be embarrassing the saffron party.

The “Kannadiga” issue

A former minister who is currently an MLA told The Federal that the state BJP is not in a position to take a strong stand against Siddaramaiah’s move. “The BJP can’t go aggressive on the state government on this issue, as Siddaramaiah has cleverly brought the ‘Kannadiga’ issue into this protest just before the elections. The BJP has to find a way to counter this,” he said.

Political commentator C Rudrappa held that the shrewd Chief Minister has put the state BJP in a dilemma over this issue. “Siddaramaiah has put the state BJP in a fix by bringing in the narrative of ‘Kannadigas’ rights, dignity, and self-respect’, and the BJP is in no position to express its anger,” he said.

BJP stand

The BJP, which is largely relying on Narendra Modi’s leadership and the Ayodhya Ram temple for electoral gains, put up a brave face in public. Former chief minister Basavaraj Bommai said the Delhi protest is “nothing but a political stunt”.

“Siddaramaiah does not seem to have gotten over his bad habit of accusing the central government of everything to cover his mistakes. An anti-farmer government is ruling the state, and not a single paisa has been released for development works,” Bommai said.

What does the letter say?

In the letter, Siddaramaiah has emphasized the need for BJP MPs to voice concern over the “injustice” in the allocation of funds compared to Karnataka’s tax share and attract national attention.

He has pointed out the “negligence and delay” in approving and supporting various schemes, severely affecting the livelihoods of people in the state. Acknowledging the MPs’ responsibility as elected representatives, he has called on them to actively participate in the “Satyagraha” to contribute to its success for the benefit of the entire population of Karnataka.

X post

In a social media post, he has mentioned that Kannadigas’ rights and dignity are continuously being subjected to injustice by the Centre and has urged leaders to support the ongoing “struggle for Kannadigas’ self-respect”.

He has also drawn attention to the fact that even though the Central Budget has doubled, the state’s share has decreased. He has pointed out that the state will receive only Rs 50,257 crore from the total Central Budget of Rs 45,03,097 crore for the fiscal year 2023-24, which is economic injustice.

“Not against any party”

“It is not a fight against any party; it is a fight against injustice and discrimination in tax share and grant allocation by the central government in the Union system. For the future of Karnataka, for the peaceful life of the Kannadigas, we will start a satyagraha at Jantar Mantar in Delhi tomorrow morning. It is the duty of all of us to convey the injustice being done to Kannadigas to the Delhi government and ask for justice. I believe all of you will forget your partisanship and join our voice for the benefit of Karnataka,” his post reads (translated).

He has named Sitharaman, Joshi, Karandlaje, Chandrasekhar, Narayanaswamy, Deve Gowda, MP and former CM Sadananda Gowda in the post, along with Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge, Opposition leader in the Rajya Sabha, inviting them all to represent the concerns of Karnataka in Delhi.