Mangaluru: The BJP is preparing to capitalize on the corruption allegations against Chief Minister Siddaramaiah as a strategic tool in both the upcoming local elections in Karnataka and the Haryana Assembly elections. BJP leaders including Prime Minister Narendra Modi have already taken up the issue during the campaign. After the Congress party’s victory in the 2023 Karnataka Assembly elections, with 135 seats, the party displayed the ‘Karnataka Model,’ by quickly implementing its five key guarantees. While the BJP had prepared to criticize Congress if DK Shivakumar had been made Chief Minister due to his earlier corruption charges, the party instead opted for Siddaramaiah, known for his clean image. The BJP has been waiting for an opportunity to attack. That opportunity came with corruption scandals, including the MUDA scam and misappropriations in the Valmiki Corporation. Despite Congress leaders attempting to define the Governor’s approval for Siddaramaiah’s prosecution as politically motivated, the High Court’s nod for the probe and the special court’s directive for the Lokayukta to investigate has provided the BJP an opportunity to strike a blow to the party’s clean governance claims. Prime Minister Modi, during his campaign in Haryana had taken up the charges against Siddaramaiah to attack Congress. The Haryana assembly elections have become a battleground for both parties, with BJP aiming for a hattrick victory and Congress seeking to halt their success and regain power. A Congress victory in Haryana would also display the expanding influence of INDIA block in northern India, from Punjab to Delhi. A senior Congress leader who agreed that the BJP would take up this issue expressed doubts about the impact of the corruption allegations. “While BJP will surely try to weaponize this issue, we have to see if it will significantly influence voters in Haryana,” a Congress leader told Deccan Chronicle. BJP leaders opine that the corruption allegations would become an election issue both in Karnataka as well as outside. They say that Congress cannot support corruption in one state and attack it in another and also pointed out that Yediyurappa had resigned when facing similar charges. Messages on social media are viral on how Siddaramaiah, while in opposition, had demanded resignations over corruption. The BJP also plans to highlight the corruption issue in Karnataka’s upcoming by-elections and local body elections, including the Zilla Panchayat, Taluk Panchayat, and Gram Panchayat polls.
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