BENGALURU: Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Wednesday hit out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi for criticising the State Government’s guarantee schemes and stating that it has no money for development works. Siddaramaiah said they appreciate the Prime Minister for showing concern that there are no funds for development due to the implementation of the guarantee schemes, but he must make it clear if that was his personal opinion or the Bharatiya Janata Party’s stand on the guarantee schemes.
“If you are opposing the guarantee schemes, please make your stand and your party stand clear. Direct the BJP leaders in Karnataka to openly oppose it. We are ready to fight the Lok Sabha polls with guarantees as a main issue. If you are ready for it, please declare,” the CM stated. BJP leaders in Karnataka have been urging the government to implement the guarantees and former chief minister BS Yediyurappa has announced that he would continue to fight till the government gives additional rice to BPL families under the Anna Bhagya scheme, the Chief Minister said and questioned Modi, what is his stand on it.
He said in its election manifesto, the BJP has promised free LPG cylinders during Ugadi, Ganesha Chaturthi, and Deepavali and free half-litre milk to BPL families. “Was it, not Revdi or freebie schemes?” the Chief Minister questioned. In Madhya Pradesh, the CM there has announced a scheme of depositing Rs 1,000 into the accounts of a girl child and promised to increase it to Rs 3000, he said.
Siddaramaiah also questioned the PM as to how they define the Kisan Samman scheme in which Rs 6,000 is deposited in farmers’ bank accounts and the PM Garib Kalyan scheme. How the PM justifies eight such schemes on which the Centre spends Rs 1.25 lakh crore, he questioned. Siddaramaiah said that the Karnataka model of governance is required to save people from price rises, and the burden of loans and to provide social security.