Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on March 24, claimed that the BJP-JD(S) alliance in Karnataka will prove to be beneficial to the Congress in the coming Lok Sabha elections.
Speaking to reporters at Mysuru airport on Sunday, Mr. Siddaramaiah said the Congress could make no electoral gains in Karnataka when the party tied up with JD(S) during the 2019 Lok Sabha polls. Similarly, he said, the alliance between the BJP and JD(S) in the 2024 Parliamentary elections will not help the alliance partners, but would instead benefit the Congress.
When reporters asked him how exactly the alliance would benefit the Congress, Mr. Siddaramaiah refused to divulge the “secret”. “I can’t tell you all that. Certain aspects are best kept as secrets,” he said with a smile.
He reiterated that the Congress would win 20 out of the 28 seats in Karnataka and said the party’s guarantee schemes in Karnataka would “majorly” hold the Congress in good stead.
“We have walked the talk. We have implemented the five guarantee schemes soon after coming to power. We have spent about ₹36,000 crore this year to implement the schemes and set aside another ₹52,900 crore for them in the coming year,” Mr. Siddaramaiah said.
“The Congress party is relying on its achievements and contributions to society. The people of the State had blessed us last year (during the 2023 assembly polls) and will do so in the coming elections also,” he said.
The BJP “lies” to the people, he alleged. Out of the 600 promises made to the people before the 2018 Assembly elections, the party was not able to implement even 10% of them, he said.
Further, he went on to ask about the fate of the other promises made by the BJP, including giving ₹15 lakh to each person, generating two crore jobs, doubling the farmers’ income and “Acche Din”. “Why will people believe in Narendra Modi?” the CM asked.
Gubbi MLA’s remark
Mr. Siddaramaiah also made light of the recent statement made by Gubbi MLA S.R. Srinivas on his continuation as Chief Minister after the Lok Sabha polls.
Seeking to put Mr. Srinivas’ statement in the right perspective, he said the Congress MLA from Gubbi in Tumakuru district had pointed to the implementation of five guarantee schemes by Mr. Siddaramaiah. He had asked the people of Tumakuru to elect the Congress candidate under these circumstances and ensure his (Siddaramaiah’s) continuation in the post of Chief Minister.
Ticket to kin of Ministers
When asked about the party fielding relatives of Ministers in several Lok Sabha constituencies in the State, Mr. Siddaramaiah said the party had given a ticket to the persons favoured by the people in the constituencies.
He denied the charge that the Congress was perpetuating “family politics” and said the party leadership was respecting the wishes of the people.
Announcement of next list
The next list of the Congress party with its nominees for the four remaining constituencies is likely to be announced on Monday or Tuesday.
He denied that the party was facing a dilemma in any of the constituencies where the tickets were yet to be announced.
To another question if the party considered Mysuru and Chamarajanagar prestigious constituencies, he said the party would be taking the electoral contest in all 28 constituencies seriously. “All the constituencies are prestigious,” he said.
