Bengaluru, Nov 8 (IANS) Union Minister for Heavy Industries and Steel H. D. Kumaraswamy alleged that Congress came to power in the last Assembly elections in Karnataka by stealing votes.

“It is wrong for the Chief Minister and Deputy Chief Minister to accuse the BJP of vote theft. The very people making these allegations came to power in the state by stealing votes. If that is not the case, how were they able to predict so precisely that they would win 136 seats?” he alleged while speaking to the media after welcoming the newly introduced Ernakulam–KSR Bengaluru Vande Bharat Express at the Sangolli Rayanna Railway Station in Bengaluru.

He added that Congress was the one that committed vote theft, and yet today they are criticising Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Kumaraswamy further questioned, “Did Narendra Modi ‘steal votes’ to ensure that the BJP won 67 seats in Karnataka? Congress leaders are misleading the public with such baseless statements. The people of the state are facing several serious issues; this is where their attention should be.”

He criticised the joint press conference held by the Chief Minister and Deputy Chief Minister, alleging that they held a press conference just to speak falsehoods about vote theft.

“This is nothing but pettiness. The people of Karnataka have witnessed the Chief Minister and Deputy Chief Minister making baseless allegations. They are using such topics only to divert the public. The day the people permanently send the Congress home is not far away.”

Responding to media questions about the absence of Shivakumar from the Vande Bharat reception event, Minister Kumaraswamy said that Shivakumar has no time to focus on development matters, but is busy with vote-theft politics.

Calling vote theft a big lie created by Congress for propaganda, he said, “For two and a half years, they have wasted time dwelling on such trivial issues. For the next two and a half years, too, they will neither be able to do anything nor will they do anything.”

–IANS

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