BJP MPs allege Karnataka Congress ministers are raising funds for Bihar elections.
CM Siddaramaiah denies any financial contribution from Karnataka to Bihar polls.
Deputy CM DK Shivakumar urges BJP to provide evidence of the alleged fundraising.
BJP MPs Allege Karnataka Ministers Raising Funds For Bihar Polls; Congress Denies Charges
BJP MPs Jagadish Shettar and B Y Raghavendra allege Karnataka Congress ministers are raising funds for Bihar Assembly polls. CM Siddaramaiah and Deputy CM DK Shivakumar deny the claims and demand proof.
Summary
Two Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MPs from Karnataka on Monday accused ruling Congress leaders of collecting funds in the state to support the upcoming Bihar Assembly elections, claims that have been strongly denied by the state government.
According to PTI, BJP MPs Jagadish Shettar and B Y Raghavendra alleged that Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and his cabinet colleagues were involved in raising money for Bihar polls, resulting in corruption within the state administration.
“All ministers in the cabinet have been looting through officials to send the funds for Bihar polls. Officials have been asked to collect money. After gathering money from transfers, now it is being done in the name of renewals. All ministers are collecting money for Bihar polls. It has become their main business,” Raghavendra told reporters in Shivamogga, PTI reported.
Shettar, a former Chief Minister, claimed Siddaramaiah hosted a dinner with cabinet colleagues to discuss Bihar elections, setting targets for each minister to collect funds based on their department and capacity. He added that Karnataka acts as a key resource base for the Congress nationally, describing the state government as functioning like an “ATM” for the party’s high command.
Responding to the allegations, Siddaramaiah dismissed the claims, stating that “we have not given even 5 paise to any state election from Karnataka, we are not giving to Bihar also,” PTI reported. He further suggested that BJP itself had engaged in similar activities in the past and was now targeting Congress leaders.
Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar also refuted the claims, urging BJP to provide evidence. “If they have any evidence, let them release it. Let Raghavendra not become synonymous with lies. There are some leaders who do hit and run, let Raghavendra too not become the same,” he told reporters in Mangaluru, according to PTI.
The Bihar Assembly elections are scheduled in two phases on November 6 and 11, with vote counting set for November 14.
(With inputs from PTI)
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