Siddaramaiah later clarified that his remarks were specifically aimed at the chief minister.
Bengaluru:
Former Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has landed himself in hot water for his jibe at BJP’s promotion of Lingayats for the upcoming assembly elections in the state. Asked about the BJP’s stand on whether a Lingayat should be the next chief minister, the Congress veteran said, “There is already a Lingayat chief minister (BS Bommai). He is the root of all corruption in the state.”
The BJP immediately launched a scathing attack against Siddaramaiah, saying he had insulted the entire Lingayat community.
Mr. Bommai accused him of mocking the entire Lingayat community, though Siddaramaiah later clarified that his remarks were specifically aimed at the chief minister.
“It is not right for a former Chief Minister to make such a statement. He has said that the entire Lingayat community is corrupt. The Brahmin community was mocked in the past. Earlier, he tried to break the Lingayat-Veerashaiva community.” When he was the chief minister, the people of the state would teach Siddaramaiah a lesson,” Mr Bommai said.
Siddaramaiah said that there have been many honest Lingayat chief ministers whom he respects and the BJP has twisted his remarks.
“My comment refers only to Bommai. I only said that Basavaraj Bommai alone is corrupt. I did not say that Lingayats are corrupt. So, it is unfair to make such a comprehensive report. There have been very honest Lingayat chief ministers. S Nijalingappa, Virendra Patil and others for whom I have great respect as they were very honest chief ministers. My comments have been twisted by the BJP.
Earlier, former Karnataka Chief Minister Jagadish Shettar, who recently joined the Congress after quitting the BJP as he was denied a ticket, had said that many Lingayat leaders have left the BJP. Mr Shettar, himself a Lingayat leader, said the BJP’s Lingayat pitch would not work in his favor and people would not believe his statement.
“Why have they started this now? Why didn’t they do it earlier? The BJP is doing this only for electoral purposes, people will not believe their campaign even if they announce a Lingayat chief minister,” Shettar said on Saturday. “
Siddaramaiah on Wednesday filed his nomination from Varuna constituency for the May 10 Karnataka Assembly elections, reiterating that this would be his last election and laying out a “succession plan” of sorts.
The 75-year-old leader of the opposition indicated that his son and grandson would be his political successors. “This is my last election, after that it is Yatindra (son), Dhawan Rakesh (grandson)…”, he said.
Siddaramaiah’s younger son Dr. Yatindra Siddaramaiah is the sitting Congress MLA from Varuna.
The last date for filing nominations is April 20. The polling will be held on May 10 and the counting of votes will take place on May 13.