As Prime Minister Narendra Modi is kickstarting his general election campaign from Karnataka’s Kalaburagi on Saturday, CM Siddaramaiah attacked the former and asked him why his party is silent about the ‘electoral bond scam.’
In a series of X posts, Siddaramaiah said, “For a decade, you held power, promising to bring back black money from Swiss Bank, eliminate black money via demonetisation, claiming ‘Na Khaunga, Na Khane Dunga’, and being the so-called ‘Chowkidar of the Nation’. Now, it is time for you to address the issues surrounding the electoral bond scam.”
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Siddaramaiah also questioned why the State Bank of India was reluctant to submit the details of electoral bonds to the top court. “Despite the Supreme Court’s order, why is the State Bank of India (SBI) hesitant to provide complete information? If the sale and purchase of electoral bonds were conducted legally, why is SBI concealing information? Who is exerting pressure on SBI? Prime Minister @narendramodi, please respond,” he asked.
He further said that the Union government is misusing agencies like ED and CBI to extort donations from businessmen. Siddaramaiah said, “When we look at the IT, ED, and CBI raids on these businessmen and the dates they purchased electoral bonds, it seems like a clear blackmail case. Is the Union Government misusing its investigative agencies to extort donations? Is the electoral bond a political weapon of mass extortion in the hands of BJP?”
The Karnataka CM also doubted the quality of infrastructure and medicines provided by the companies that funded political parties through electoral bonds. He asked how anyone can rely on the roads and bridges constructed by these companies.
He then urged the Supreme Court to establish a special investigation committee to probe the electoral bond row.
Meanwhile, PM Modi is all set to address the crowd in Hyderabad Karnataka’s Kalaburagi, the home turf of Congress national president Mallikarjun Kharge. The Prime Minister will also campaign in Shimoga where former Karnataka CM Yediyurappa’s elder son, BY Raghavendra is contesting on a BJP ticket. The BJP, which is in alliance with the JDS in the southern state, is confident about winning at least 25 out of 28 Lok Sabha seats in Karnataka.
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