Despite reports of infighting in the Congress and the BJP's efforts to force Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah to step down on “moral grounds”, the Congress has decided to present a unified front
Prime Minister Narendra Modi appears to have become a unifying factor in the Congress in the wake of the Karnataka High Court’s (HC) dismissal of the petition made by Chief Minister Siddaramaiah in the Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) site allotment case. Every time there is a possibility of factionalism emerging within the Congress, especially in response to PM Modi’s attacks on Siddaramaiah, the party closes ranks.
Despite reports of infighting in the Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) efforts to force Siddaramaiah to step down on “moral grounds", the Congress has decided to present a unified front in this fight rather than targeting Siddaramaiah alone.
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Siddaramaiah has repeatedly stated that he is “not afraid" and will not resign as developments in the MUDA case progress.
‘WHY SHOULD I RESIGN? I AM CLEAN, INNOCENT’
“Why should I resign? Has (HD) Kumaraswamy resigned? He is on bail, go and ask him… the court verdict says that only an inquiry needs to be done. How can one seek my resignation at the inquiry stage itself? I will answer them… We will face them politically and legally. It is nothing but a conspiracy by the BJP and JDS," Siddaramaiah said at a press conference, responding to a question from the media.
The Karnataka Chief Minister also stated that his political career, spanning four decades, has been unblemished and that in this case, too, he will emerge unscathed.
“My career is without blemish. They may try to taint it, but they will remain unsuccessful. I am clean and innocent," Siddaramaiah said in an earlier interview with News18.
Congress ministers in Karnataka, the cabinet, and all of Karnataka stand behind the CM, and he will emerge clean in this case, they said in unison soon after the Karnataka High Court delivered its verdict on Tuesday.
CONGRESS FIRM, OPPN ATTACK ON
Karnataka minister Priyank Kharge told News18 that the BJP should introspect first. He questioned why the CM should resign or why anyone should claim that his image has been tarnished. “Have we not seen cases related to Hemant Soren, Arvind Kejriwal and Manish Sisodia? They came out of jail even though the cases were false. They emerged without a blemish on their image, and even stronger. Look at how the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) are behaving — they are all caged parrots. The new caged parrot for the BJP is the Karnataka Raj Bhavan," said Kharge.
When asked whether the Congress is united in backing the CM, another senior minister, Santosh Lad, replied, “A hundred per cent…Not only has this made the Congress stronger, but we will also fight this unitedly, and Siddaramaiah will emerge as a stronger and taller politician."
ALSO READ | MUDA Scam Case: What Legal Options Does CM Siddaramaiah Have After Karnataka HC Setback?
Kharge asked that if “the PM is so aware of what is happening in Karnataka, including where a Ganapati is or targeting Siddaramaiah, doesn’t he know about his own leader Munirathna?" “Does he not know that his former CM is involved in a serious POCSO case, or that his BJP state chief Yediyurappa’s son Vijayendra has shell companies and is accused of money laundering? How do they miss all that," Kharge asked.
Both Lad and Kharge stressed that the Congress, including the Gandhis and Kharge, are 100 per cent supportive of Siddaramaiah. The rest, they said, is coming from the BJP playbook in Karnataka at the behest of PM Modi, Kharge added.
HIGH COMMAND ORDER, DK SHIVAKUMAR & CASE PROCEEDING
Political analyst Sandeep Shastri stated that the Congress will not change the CM at this point, as they have found a good opportunity to take on the opposition BJP. “However, Siddaramaiah’s image of being corruption-free is now dented with this High Court verdict. Nonetheless, one cannot rule out the possibility of a change in leadership in the near future," Shastri told News18.
A few weeks ago, when Karnataka Governor Thawarchand Gehlot gave sanction to prosecute Siddaramaiah, several names were thrown into the ring. There were claims and counterclaims of leaders who were ready to take Siddaramaiah’s place. Individual meetings were held among senior ministers like Satish Jarkiholi, G Parameshwara, M B Patil and Basavaraj Rayareddy. Siddaramaiah also met these ‘probables’ one-on-one and discussed the issue.
However, soon enough, a directive came from the Congress high command that no leader should speak against the Congress government in Karnataka or Siddaramaiah. This message was clear, even to those backing Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar as a potential CM replacement. It was reported that there was an unwritten agreement when the Congress came to power in the southern state, whereby Siddaramaiah and D K Shivakumar would share the five-year term.
“There is no such agreement. Siddaramaiah will continue as the CM for the full five-year term," said a confident senior Congress minister, known to be close to the CM. This statement was echoed by D K Shivakumar as well.
However, those in favour of Shivakumar becoming the CM stressed the importance of the Deputy CM stepping in at the right time. “It will ultimately be the high command’s decision, but we are hopeful that D K Shivakumar will become CM when the time is right," said another senior Congress leader from the Deputy CM’s camp.
ALSO READ | ‘Unconstitutional, Attempt To Destabilise Our Govt,’ Says Siddaramaiah As Governor Gives Nod To Prosecute Him In MUDA ‘Scam’
A day after the Karnataka High Court upheld the sanction granted by Governor Thawarchand Gehlot to investigate Siddaramaiah on allegations of illegalities in the allotment of 14 sites to his wife B M Parvathi by MUDA, a court ordered a Lokayukta police investigation into the case. Siddaramaiah once again reiterated that he was ready to face any investigation regarding MUDA. The court directed the Lokayukta police to file the investigation report by December 24.
The opposition BJP in Karnataka once again called for Siddaramaiah to step down and allow an independent investigation into the matter.
Former Rajya Sabha MP and BJP leader Rajeev Chandrasekhar, at a press conference in New Delhi, said: “The High Court has validated the governor’s actions. The BJP demands that Chief Minister Siddaramaiah tender his resignation and allow a free and independent investigation into the allegations of shameful corruption."
