"PM Modi trying to divide South and North Indians," says Siddaramaiah

May 17, 2024

New Delhi [India], May 17 : Amid the ongoing Lok Sabha elections in the country, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah launched a scathing attack against Prime Minister Narendra Modi saying that he is trying to create a divide between the people of North and the South.
Taking to social media platform X, Siddaramaiah wrote, "Just because the elections in the Southern States are over, an ungrateful Prime Minister is now trying to divide South and North Indians by targeting people from the Southern States."
Siddaramaiah further stated, "We consider Karnataka as the daughter of India. India has never discriminated against anyone, but people like Modi spew venom."
He emphasized that he is proud of the "symbiotic relationship with people from every State."
Earlier on Tuesday, Siddaramaiah reacted sharply to Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde's remark that the Congress government in Karnataka will collapse after the Lok Sabha election.
The Chief Minister said that instead of talking about the collapse of his government, Shinde should save his government from collapsing.
The Chief Minister said that statements like Shinde's are politically motivated. He said that the political atmosphere in Karnataka is favourable to the Congress.
Talking about campaigning for elections in other states, he said that he has received an invitation to campaign.
Meanwhile, Karnataka Deputy CM DK Shivakumar also launched an attack on the BJP at a news conference in Lucknow. The Karnataka Deputy CM alleged that the BJP had not fulfilled any of its promises to the people.
"BJP needs to first answer the people of India on this: Where is the black money it was supposed to bring back? Why hasn't the income of farmers doubled as BJP promised? Where are the 2 crore/year jobs promised to our youth? Congress Party on the other hand; introduced the 5 guarantees on the first day itself in Karnataka. Instructed its officials to implement the 5 guarantees in the first month only. The difference is clear. People see and vote for the one who delivers on promises, and that's why throughout India, people are supporting the Congress Party to lead them towards a brighter future,"DK Shivakumar said.
Notably, voting for 28 Lok Sabha seats in Karnataka was held in two phases. While 14 seats were polled on April 26, the remaining 14 voted on May 7. The counting of votes is scheduled for June 4. In the 2019 elections, the BJP almost swept the state by winning 25 out of 28 seats. Congress and JD-S -- who were in coalition in the state government -- could only win one seat each.