Bengaluru, June 2 (IANS) Senior BJP leader and Leader of Opposition in the Karnataka Assembly R. Ashoka launched a sharp attack on outgoing Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Tuesday, alleging that he left the state in a severe financial crisis before stepping down from office and handing over leadership to D.K. Shivakumar. He also said that Siddaramaiah’s entire efforts now are focused on securing a plum post for his son.

In a strongly worded statement titled “Karnataka in Ruins: The Shameful Legacy of Siddaramaiah”, Ashoka claimed that the outgoing Chief Minister had “walked away after completely wrecking Karnataka’s economy,” leaving behind a financially distressed state for his successor to manage.

Dismissing the Congress party’s portrayal of the leadership transition as smooth and orderly, Ashoka alleged that Siddaramaiah had chosen not to fight to retain the Chief Minister’s post because he was aware of the state’s deteriorating financial condition.

“The real reason is that Siddaramaiah knew the financial situation was collapsing. He deliberately left a bankrupt state to his successor,” Ashoka alleged.

The BJP leader accused the Congress government of pushing Karnataka into an “insurmountable ocean of debt” and claimed that developmental activities had come to a standstill. He contrasted the Congress administration with the previous BJP government, asserting that the latter had invested heavily in infrastructure and development projects.

Ashoka further alleged that several sectors were facing financial distress due to unpaid government dues. He claimed that contractors had not received payments for completed works, power distribution companies (ESCOMs) were facing severe financial strain, and welfare schemes had suffered due to lack of funding.

He alleged that Gruha Lakshmi instalments had been halted, funds for the Shakti scheme were unavailable, RTC employees had been deprived of their rightful dues, and allocations for the Annabhagya scheme had been delayed.

Questioning the sustainability of the Congress government’s guarantee schemes, Ashoka alleged that “unscientific” welfare commitments have weakened Karnataka’s financial health and warned that the burden could eventually fall on citizens through higher taxation.

The Leader of Opposition also criticised Siddaramaiah’s recent visits to New Delhi, alleging that he was focused on securing a political position for his son rather than addressing the state’s financial challenges.

Ashoka further claimed that Siddaramaiah’s replacement as Chief Minister, allegedly at the insistence of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, had angered members of the Other Backward Classes (OBC) community and could trigger internal conflicts within the Karnataka Congress.

Reiterating the BJP’s opposition role, Ashoka said the party would raise the issue both inside the Legislative Assembly and through public protests. He asserted that the BJP would continue its campaign to ensure that pending payments to contractors, RTC employees and beneficiaries of government welfare schemes were cleared.

It can be recalled that the outgoing Chief Minister rejected claims that Karnataka’s “Guarantee Schemes” had bankrupted the treasury, highlighting strong fiscal performance. He pointed out that the state ranks second nationwide in GST collections, behind only Maharashtra.

Siddaramaiah noted that Karnataka’s growth rate of 8.1 per cent exceeds the national average of 7.4 per cent. He defended his debt management, stating that the state’s fiscal deficit remains within the 3 per cent limit set by the Fiscal Responsibility Act, with debt standing at approximately 24.94 per cent of the Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP).

–IANS

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