BJP, Sangh Parivar indulging in “dirty politics”: Siddaramaiah

PTI, Sep 26, 2022, 6:19 PM IST

Senior Congress leader Siddaramaiah on Monday hit out at the ruling BJP and ‘Sangh Parivar’, accusing them of indulging in ”dirty politics” and celebrating Mahatma Gandhi’s assassin Nathuram Godse.

The Leader of Opposition in the State Assembly, while speaking to people of his earlier constituency ‘Varuna’ here, currently represented by son Yatindra, said he would contest the 2023 Assembly polls from wherever the party high command asks him to, but would always be available to serve them.

”If anyone is indulging in dirty politics it is Sangh Parivar and BJP; Congress has never indulged in dirty politics in this country. Will a party that fought for the country’s freedom and got it, indulge in dirty politics? These people carry the poster of Nathuram Godse, who killed Mahatma Gandhi, in Ganesh processions, is it not dirty politics,” he said. Speaking to reporters, while hitting back at Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai, he said, ”What morality do they have? What do they mean by dirty politics? Is pointing at their corruption dirty politics? Is highlighting their 40 per cent commission corruption dirty politics?” Slamming Congress leaders for their ‘PayCM’ campaign, Bommai had recently stated that it was the grand old party’s dirty politics.

The former Chief Minister, later addressing a gathering in Varuna said, only people from a particular caste can become the RSS chief and there was no democracy within that organisation.

”If I’m a lawyer today, if I have become an MLA or a Minister, it is because of the Constitution. If Droupadi Murmu, who belongs to the ST community, has occupied the country’s top post and has become a President, it is because of the Constitution. Will they make a person from the ST community as RSS chief?,” he asked.

For one to become RSS chief, he should be from a particular caste, Siddaramaiah alleged and asked, ”Since 1925 till today, in 97 years, has a person from a caste other than one caste become its chief?” ”Is there a Constitution there (RSS)? Is the Constitution applicable there?…. Babasaheb Ambedkar used to say: I’m born as a Hindu, tried a lot to change its system, but failed. I won’t die as a Hindu,” he added.

Siddaramaiah also said Varuna is the constituency that made him the Chief Minister and that he can never forget the voters of the constituency, and would ever be grateful to them.

He said, ”I will contest from the constituency from where the high command asks me to, whether it is Varuna or Kolar, Koppal or Badami…don’t think about certain work that have not taken place in the constituency (Varuna), whether I’m an MLA or Yatindra, whoever it is, think that I’m your MLA. ” After Varuna became a constituency in 2008 following delimitation, Siddaramaiah represented it till he vacated the seat for his son Yatindra in the 2018 Assembly polls and went back to his old constituency of Chamundeshwari.

Siddaramaiah, who was Chief Minister then, had lost in Chamundeshwari in 2018, but won from Badami (in Bagalkote district), the other constituency from where he had contested.