Daijiworld Media Network - Bengaluru
Bengaluru, Feb 20: Karnataka BJP has urged chief minister Siddaramaiah not to divert funds allocated for marginalised communities in the budget for the financial year 2025-26, which is set to be presented on March 7.
BJP state president and MLA B Y Vijayendra stated that since Siddaramaiah is presenting his "last" budget, the BJP demands that funds meant for marginalised communities be utilised as intended.
“We had organised a workshop to create awareness among the community across the state in this regard,” he said.
He was speaking at a preparatory workshop on the ‘Public Movement Against the Misuse of SCP-TSP Funds by the Anti-Dalit Congress Government in Karnataka’ at the BJP state headquarters, Jagannath Bhavan, in Bengaluru.
Vijayendra warned that Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe (SC/ST) communities have been continuously subjected to injustice. He stated that if people do not remain vigilant, the government will repeat the same actions in the upcoming budget.
He emphasised the need to fight for the rights of SC/ST communities and said that for the BJP to regain power in Karnataka, it must raise its voice for the oppressed and marginalised sections of society.
Criticising the Congress government led by Siddaramaiah, Vijayendra said that Congress leaders claim to be the saviours of AHINDA (a Kannada acronym for minorities, backward classes, and Dalits), but in reality, they have done great injustice to SC/ST communities.
He pointed out that the BJP is committed to the concept of Antyodaya (upliftment of the last person in society) and ensuring that benefits reach the most marginalised.
Vijayendra alleged that in the last financial year, Siddaramaiah had announced an allocation of Rs 39,914 crore for the SCP-TSP scheme. However, only Rs 23,485 crore was actually released, and of that, only Rs 20,404 crore was spent.
He highlighted that the BJP has staged several protests in the past against the Congress government’s alleged misuse of funds meant for SC/ST communities.
With Siddaramaiah set to present another budget soon, Vijayendra warned that if action is not taken now, funds meant for these communities will again be diverted.
Drawing attention to a recent statement by the Karnataka energy minister, Vijayendra pointed out that various departments, including PWD and irrigation, have pending bills amounting to Rs 6,000 crore.
He questioned whether this was due to Siddaramaiah’s lack of experience or his helplessness in implementing the Congress government’s guarantee schemes, which he claimed have pushed Karnataka into financial distress.
Accusing the state of heading towards bankruptcy, Vijayendra said that the government does not have enough funds to pay salaries to government employees, Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) has dues of Rs 7,000 crore, and the state is struggling to pay electricity bills.
He reiterated his demand for the government to release a white paper on the state’s financial situation.
Vijayendra criticised the Congress for using B R Ambedkar’s name in every election while failing to uplift oppressed communities.
He accused the Congress of portraying itself as a government that fulfils all its promises, while in reality, farmers, the poor, and youth continue to suffer under its administration.
He asserted that the Congress government should have prioritised the economic, educational, and social upliftment of SC/ST communities. However, he claimed that despite frequently invoking Ambedkar’s name, the Congress has continuously betrayed these communities.
“Unfortunately, after Siddaramaiah’s government came to power in Karnataka, the money meant for the welfare of these communities has been diverted. More than Rs 15,000 crore has been diverted in the last financial year,” he alleged.