Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said here on Friday that there was a dire threat to democracy and the Constitution which was being sought to be replaced by vested interest groups and Hindutva forces.
He was speaking at a seminar on “Anxieties of Democracy in Contemporary India” organised by the Union of Progressive Organisations, Mysuru, to commemorate socialist and Gandhian Pa. Mallesh, who passed away in January 2023.
Mr. Siddaramaiah said the three pillars of democracy — legislature, executive, and judiciary — were being weakened and people of the country should realise from where the threat was emerging and should reject such forces.
To buttress the argument that the Constitution was being weakened under the BJP rule since the last 10 years, Mr. Siddaramaiah said that no action was taken by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi or the party when the then Union Minister Anantkumar Hegde spoke of changing the Constitution. “Their silence amounts to compliance,” he added.
He said those who did not fight for Independence were teaching patriotism to the Congress, which participated in the freedom struggle.
Mr. Siddaramaiah also raised the issue of disparity in tax devolution to Karnataka and said that though the State generated ₹4.5 lakh crore by way of tax, it received only ₹50,250 crore in return.
Though the Union government argued that it funded railway projects, highway projects etc., the land was given for free by the State besides meeting 5 per cent of the project cost with respect to railway projects, he added. Moreover, the revenue generated by the Railways within the State was also not shared, said Mr. Siddaramaiah.
“If the issue of disparity is raised then we are branded as anti-nationals out to divide the country. But Mr. Modi, as Chief Minister of Gujarat, had also raised the disparity in tax devolution,” said Mr. Siddaramaiah.
Paying tributes to Mallesh, the Chief Minister described him as a crusader who fought for people’s issues. There was no agitation or struggle that did not involve Mallesh in Mysuru, he added.
