Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK) president Thol. Thirumavalvan on Saturday said Congress leader and former Chief Minister of Karnataka Siddaramaiah could make a good Prime Minister.
Speaking at an award function organised by the VCK in which Mr. Siddaramaiah was conferred the Ambedkar Sudar Award, Mr. Thirumavalavan acknowledged that his opinion could be viewed as controversial. “Someone may ask why am I mentioning the name of Siddaramaiah for Prime Ministership when Rahul Gandhi is there. It is for the Congress party to choose,” he said.
He said he thought Mr. Siddaramaiah could be a good choice for Prime Minister because of his visionary leadership and ideological commitment to oppose the Sanatana forces. Alleging that the BJP either tries to entice or threaten by filing cases if it wants to bring someone into its fold, he said that there was a need for a leader who could not be threatened and who was uncompromising in opposing the BJP.
He highlighted the measures taken by the former Chief Minister towards the upliftment of Dalits and other marginalised sections, particularly the enactment of a special act for separate budgetary allocation for the Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs) and the Karnataka Prevention and Eradication of Inhuman Evil Practices and Black Magic Act.
Arguing that it is extremely dangerous for the country if the BJP returned to power in 2024, he said there was a need to put up a united fight led by the Congress.
Mr. Siddaramaiah said BJP could never be a party for social justice. While welcoming the decision to make Draupadi Murmu the President, he said social justice, however, could not end with tokenisms. He blamed the party for actively trying to dilute reservation policies that benefited SCs, STs and Other Backward Castes.
Pointing out that the significantly higher budgetary allocation made to SCs and STs after his government enacted the special act, he appealed to Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin to pass a similar Act.
Retired IAS officer Chellapan, writer and researcher S.V. Rajadurai, archaeologist K. Rajan, entrepreneur V.G. Santhosham, writer R. Jawahar (posthumously) and national vice-president of the Social Democratic Party of India Tehlan Baqavi were also felicitated with awards.
