FIR likely to be filed today, what more is Siddaramaiah waiting for: K’taka BJP

Bengaluru: BJP leader R Ashoka said on Thursday that an FIR is likely to be filed against CM Siddaramaiah later in the day so what more is he waiting for before quitting.

Speaking during a protest organised by the Karnataka BJP in front of the Gandhi statue at Vidhana Soudha, Leader of Opposition (LoP) Ashoka urged the CM to tender his resignation.

He challenged CM Siddaramaiah, stating that if he dissolves the state Assembly and shows that the people are with him, the BJP will stop protesting against him.

Ashoka added that if CM Siddaramaiah dissolves the Assembly, out of the 136 Congress MLAs, 135 will not support him.

“Even Congress leaders who are his close associates, like Minister for Housing and Waqf Zameer Ahmad Khan, Minister for Social Welfare H.C. Mahadevappa, and even MLA Kakasaheb P Patil wouldn’t stand by him,” he remarked.

Ashoka pointed out that both the High Court and the Special Court for Public Representatives have issued orders for a probe and maintained that CM Siddaramaiah’s only option was to resign.

He recalled how former CM B.S. Yediyurappa was accused of influencing investigations when he was the CM and Siddaramaiah had at that time said that impartial investigations weren't possible.

Speaking at the protest, Chalavadi Narayanaswamy, the Leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Council, alleged that the Congress and Siddaramaiah have ruined themselves by turning Karnataka into an ATM.

He criticised the Congress party for tarnishing the state's image at the national level through corruption.

Narayanaswamy added that the CM should have resigned immediately after the recent High Court order, and the AICC President Mallikarjun Kharge should have taken his resignation and expelled him from the party.

He said this incident shows the Congress High Command’s weakness.

Deputy Leader of the Opposition and BJP MLA Aravind Bellad alleged, "This government is embroiled in various scams every day. There have been scams in the Valmiki Tribal Board, the Tourism Department, and a Rs 5,000 crore scam in the Labour Department. CM Siddaramaiah is the mastermind behind the MUDA scam."

BJP MLC, C.T. Ravi professed that the Arkavathi land denotification case shows that CM Siddaramaiah is not as clean as he claims. He accused the CM of denotifying 880 acres of land for real estate brokers under the guise of redoing a project.

Former Minister and MLA Araga Jnanendra accused the Congress party of being involved in scams across the country and charged CM Siddaramaiah of covering up corruption through the SIT.

“Even ordinary citizens are speaking ill of CM Siddaramaiah due to his involvement in the looting of residential plots,” he claimed.

Former Minister Janardhana Reddy criticised CM Siddaramaiah for bringing shame to Karnataka and said the entire state has been embarrassed by his corrupt practices.

“CM Siddaramaiah has been responsible for corruption that has made Kannadigas across India hang their heads in shame,” he said.