Siddaramaiah declined Rajya Sabha offer (Img: Internet)
Bengaluru: Hours after stepping down as Karnataka Chief Minister, senior Congress leader Siddaramaiah said he had declined an offer to move to the Rajya Sabha and would continue to remain active in Karnataka Politics.
Addressing reporters in Bengaluru on Thursday, Siddaramaiah said he had no plans to shift to national politics despite stepping down from the top post in Karnataka.
“I will continue in active politics. I have no interest in national politics,” Siddaramaiah said after submitting his resignation to the Governor’s office.
Siddaramaiah says he rejected a Rajya Sabha offer after stepping down as Karnataka CM, asserting he will continue active politics in the state. He also defended Congress guarantee schemes and said the leadership change was made on the high command’s direction.#Siddaramaiah… pic.twitter.com/QjjC6RFAi1
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The veteran Congress leader clarified that his Siddaramaiah Resignation came following instructions from the party Congress High Command..“Two days back, the high command asked me to step down. I told them I would resign today, and accordingly I submitted my resignation,” he said.
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Since Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot was out of Bengaluru, Siddaramaiah said the resignation letter had been handed over to the Governor’s office and secretary.
The Congress government, however, remains stable with full majority support in the Assembly, he added.
Reflecting on his political journey, Siddaramaiah thanked Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi and Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge for supporting him throughout his career in the party.
He said he was grateful for getting the opportunity to serve Karnataka twice as Chief Minister and also as Leader of Opposition.
Calling himself an “accidental politician”, Siddaramaiah said his political ideology was shaped by the teachings of Buddha, Basava and BR Ambedkar.
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Siddaramaiah strongly defended the Congress government’s flagship guarantee Congress Guarantee Schemes, saying Opposition claims about Karnataka’s economy collapsing had proven incorrect.
He said Karnataka remained among the top states in GST collections and per capita income despite large-scale welfare spending. According to Siddaramaiah, the government spent over Rs 1.4 lakh crore on welfare guarantees while continuing to maintain economic growth above the national average.
He also accused the Centre of withholding funds meant for Karnataka and blamed the previous BJP government for the state’s financial challenges.
