Karnataka: BJP dares CM to prove his claim of having people’s support by seeking fresh mandate

Questioning the claims of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, who has turned down the demand for his resignation on the grounds that people of the State are backing him, the Opposition BJP challenged him to prove his popularity by seeking fresh mandate.

The challenge was thrown at the Chief Minister by Leader of the Opposition R. Ashok during the protest held by the BJP’s elected representatives in front of the Mahatma Gandhi statue on the Vidhana Soudha premises demanding his resignation in the wake of the inquiry being ordered into alleged irregularities in grant of sites by MUDA to his wife.

“Though the Karnataka High Court has upheld the Governor’s action of granting permission for conducting a probe, the Chief Minister is refusing to resign, saying that people of the State are with him. If that is the case, let him prove it by seeking a fresh mandate through mid-term polls,” Mr. Ashok said.

Stating that several leaders in the Congress were waiting for their turn to become Chief Minister, Mr. Ashok said those leaders are bound to rebel against Mr. Siddaramaiah if he did not quit immediately.

“Mr. Siddaramaiah is following double standards. When he was the Leader of the Opposition, he had demanded the resignation of the then Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa on the grounds that his continuation as Chief Minister would affect the probe. He had also vociferously demanded the resignation of the then RDPR Minister K.S. Eshwarappa in connection with the death of a contractor. But though he is facing a similar situation now, he is arguing that there is no need for him to quit,” he said.

Meanwhile BJP State president B.Y. Vijayendra launched an attack at Mr. Siddaramaiah accused him of “shamelessly continuing in the post.” He urged the Chief Minister to uphold the dignity of the State by tender his resignation. “Mr. Siddaramaiah should choose to follow the ideals of Arvind Kejriwal or our own the late Ramakrishna Hegde and resign,” he said.

The protesters were taken into custody by the police and later released.

Published - September 26, 2024 09:16 pm IST