In a recent statement, Congress Chief Minister Siddaramaiah criticized the BJP government at the Centre, accusing them of favoring capitalists over the poor. He also used strong language, referring to the BJP as ‘neech’ (despicable) and questioning their humanity for refusing to supply additional rice to help those in need.
Karnataka had requested extra rice from the Centre to provide an additional 5 kilograms to every beneficiary under the State government’s Anna Bhagya scheme.
Siddaramaiah’s Political Career
Siddaramaiah mentioned that during his previous tenure as CM, he used to provide seven kilograms of free rice, but the previous BJP government reduced it to four and five kilograms. During the recent assembly election, he had promised to increase it by additional five kilograms.
Siddaramaiah’s Political Ideology
However, he expressed disappointment in the Centre’s decision to deny them the rice. They were willing to pay for it and didn’t request it for free. Siddaramaiah questioned the ethics of this decision, stating that it shows how low the BJP has stooped, calling them anti-poor and lacking in humanity.
Regarding the Centre’s reasoning for withholding the rice, the Chief Minister clarified that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had expressed concerns that providing free rice to the poor would lead some states to financial ruin. Karnataka assured the Centre that they would implement five guarantees and prevent any financial instability.
Siddaramaiah’s Policy Initiatives
Siddaramaiah also highlighted that four out of the five election promises have already been fulfilled in the state. These include ‘Shakti,’ which offers free bus rides to women on non-luxury government buses, ‘Gruha Lakshmi,’ providing ₹2,000 to female heads of households, ‘Gruha Jyothi,’ promising up to 200 units of free electricity to each household, and ‘Anna Bhagya,’ offering 10 kilograms of rice to families below the poverty line.
