The Aryavarth Express
Agency (Karnataka): Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah firmly denied any internal rift within the ruling Congress party on Tuesday, asserting that the party remains united. Responding to state BJP leaders’ statements suggesting the Congress government would fall due to internal conflicts, Siddaramaiah dismissed these claims as political rhetoric.
“Where is the rift within us? Is there a fight among us? They (BJP) say it for politics. There is no internal rift among us. If there was an internal rift, could we have faced Parliament elections unitedly? There is no rift, neither inside nor outside,” Siddaramaiah told reporters.
Reacting to Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde’s comments about replicating the ‘Maharashtra model’ to topple the Congress government in Karnataka, Siddaramaiah responded, “They (BJP leaders) have been making such claims for a year now. He (Shinde) is the Maharashtra Chief Minister. Instead of speaking about our government, let him save his government first.”
BJP President B.Y. Vijayendra recently stated that his party would not attempt to topple the government but hinted at possible unrest within the Congress following the Lok Sabha poll results. “As the party’s state President, I’m saying BJP is successfully functioning as a responsible opposition and we will continue to do so. There is no question of any operation, but we will not be responsible for the impact that the poll results will have on the ruling party,” Vijayendra said.
BJP and JD(S) leaders have repeatedly predicted the collapse of the Congress government, citing potential power struggles within the party. However, Siddaramaiah dismissed these predictions, highlighting the party’s unity during the parliamentary elections.
Following the Assembly election results in May last year, there was significant competition between Siddaramaiah and D.K. Shivakumar for the CM’s post. The Congress managed to appoint Siddaramaiah as Chief Minister and Shivakumar as the Deputy Chief Minister. Rumors of a “rotational chief minister formula,” in which Shivakumar would become CM after two-and-a-half years, have not been officially confirmed.
Siddaramaiah expressed confidence in Congress winning the upcoming biennial election for six Karnataka Legislative Council seats. “The atmosphere is good. The Congress party has taken this election seriously. We had announced candidates six months prior, so candidates got time to meet the voters,” he said, downplaying the impact of the BJP-JD(S) alliance on the MLC polls.
Addressing the potential impact of the pen-drive case (a sex scandal involving JD(S) MP Prajwal Revanna) on the MLC polls, Siddaramaiah said, “The pen-drive case has nothing to do with the polls, as voters here are graduates and teachers. They are politically aware voters; they have the strength to decide who is right and who is not. They compare the Congress government’s achievements here with the BJP at the Centre.”