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Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah slammed Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his allegations that the Congress government "looted" people in the state and used the money for the poll campaign in Maharashtra.
Addressing a press conference in Maharashtra's Solapur on Saturday, CM Siddaramaiah dared the Prime Minister to prove his allegations and vowed to retire from politics if they're proven right.
CM Siddaramaiah campaigned for the Maha Vikas Aghadi in Solapur on Saturday in the run-up to the Maharashtra assembly elections scheduled to be held on November 20.
Siddaramaiah dubbed the remarks as "blatant lies" and dared the Prime Minister to take up the challenge.
"Prime Minister Narendra Modi comes, tells blatant lies, and leaves. If he can prove his allegations, I will announce my retirement from politics. Why doesn't Modi accept my challenge? What is he afraid of?" CM Siddaramaiah asked.
"PM Modi claims that welfare guarantees will ruin the economy, yet the BJP has announced similar guarantees during elections in Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh. Why does the Prime Minister resort to such blatant lies? The Modi government, however, has shown where its priorities lie. It waived Rs 16 lakh crore of loans for the wealthy while failing to waive even a rupee for farmers," he added.
"Let Maharashtra BJP leaders and ministers visit Karnataka to verify the facts. If they can prove me wrong, I will retire from politics. But if I am right, will they apologise to the people of Maharashtra and announce their retirement from politics? We have decided to file a case against the Maharashtra BJP for publishing blatantly false advertisements against our government. Despite Karnataka contributing Rs 4.5 lakh crore annually to central taxes, it receives only Rs 60,000 crores in return," he said.
Siddaramaiah said that the Karnataka government has successfully implemented all five guarantees and highlighted the state government's Shakti Scheme, which has benefitted women.
"Another Gruha Jyothi provided free electricity up to 200 units per month to 1.62 crore families and under the Anna Bhagya scheme, 5 kg of free rice along with Rs 170 per person for an additional 5 kg of rice given to 1.2 crore families," he said.
"All guarantees were launched within eight months, under the Gruha Lakshmi scheme, 1.22 crore women heads of households are receiving Rs 2,000 per month, resulting in approximately Rs 30,000 crores being directly transferred into women's bank accounts annually. Another scheme, Yuva Nidhi provides financial assistance to unemployed graduates and diploma holders," he added.
CM Siddaramaiah also urged the people of Maharashtra to vote for Maha Vikas Aghadi.
"In contrast, during my first tenure as Chief Minister, I waived Rs 8,165 crores in loans for Karnataka's farmers. Under Manmohan Singh's leadership, Rs 76,000 crores in loans were waived for farmers across India. I urge the people of Maharashtra to vote for the Maha Vikas Aghadi to ensure the state's development and economic progress. By doing so, you will be contributing to a fairer, more inclusive future for Maharashtra."
Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah alleged that both Karnataka and Maharashtra are "victims of the Modi government's unfair treatment", claiming that his state receives only 13 paise and Maharashtra receives 15 paise for every rupee paid in taxes.
"Similarly, Maharashtra contributes Rs 8.78 lakh crore but gets back only Rs 1.3 lakh crore. This means Karnataka gets 13 paise and Maharashtra 15 paise for every rupee paid in taxes. This unfair treatment by the Modi government is an injustice to both Karnataka and Maharashtra. Karnataka's guarantees have reached people across all castes, religions, and communities, proving that these initiatives empower citizens without harming the state's finances. Maharashtra is socially and economically strong, and if Maha Vikas Aghadi comes to power, there is no doubt that all guarantees will be implemented effectively," he said.
Addressing a rally in Maharashtra earlier this month, PM Modi alleged that the Congress is "looting people" in Karnataka and the money is allegedly being used for campaigning in Maharashtra.
"In Karnataka, Congress lied and urged people to vote for them. They formed govt and were unable to fulfil their promises. Instead, they are running an extortion campaign in Karnataka. In Karnataka, scams are being unearthed every other day. It means that the Congress is looting people in broad daylight. Allegedly, Congress is using the same money to fight elections in Maharashtra. If we want to save Maharashtra, we need to keep Congress at bay," he said.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by News Agency staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)