BJP accuses Siddaramaiah govt of politicising Governor's address, calls it attack on Constitution

Bengaluru, Jan 21 (PTI) Leader of the Opposition in the Karnataka Assembly R Ashoka on Wednesday accused the Congress government in the state of attempting to politicise the Governor's address and undermine constitutional institutions to cover up what he described as governance failures.

Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot and the state government have locked horns over the Governor's address to the joint session of the Karnataka legislature on January 22.

According to the government sources, the Governor was miffed with the negative remarks on Viksit Bharat- Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajivika Mission (Gramin) (VB-G RAM G), which was launched by the Centre in place of Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act.

He wanted the two paragraphs on it be removed while the government is firm to retain them, sources told PTI.

The sources said the state government agreed to remove two sentences including the one, which says that VB - G RAM G will lead to corruption but it is still not clear whether the Governor has accepted it.

In a post on 'X', Ashoka asserted that "Governors are not spokespersons of the government; they are custodians of the Constitution," There was "absolutely no constitutional obligation for a Governor to act as the voice of a government's falsehoods," he said.

Targeting the Siddaramaiah-led government, he said it was seeking to "weaponise the Governor's address for political ends" as it was "unable to defend its record of zero development, serial corruption and administrative collapse." He described the move as "a direct and desperate attack on constitutional institutions." Ashoka said the Governor does not represent any political party and exists to uphold constitutional dignity and federal balance.

"By attempting to coerce the Governor into parroting partisan propaganda, the Congress government is deliberately undermining both constitutional propriety and federal equilibrium," the former Deputy Chief Minister said.

Citing constitutional provisions, the BJP leader said Articles 175 and 176 empower the Governor to address the legislature but do not mandate reading every word drafted by the government. He added that under Article 163, the Constitution provides scope for discretion.

Ashoka argued: "exercising constitutional discretion is not defiance, it is duty." He also took a swipe at the Congress leadership, saying, "the idea that a Governor must lend his voice to a government's false narrative may exist in the Congress political handbook but it does not exist in the Constitution of India." Ashoka alleged that development projects had stalled, contractors remain unpaid, and scams such as the MUDA issue and diversion of Valmiki Corporation funds had left the government exposed.

He claimed the controversy over the Governor's address was a "deliberate and calculated distraction strategy" to divert public attention from these issues.

"The Governor's exercise of constitutional discretion is entirely lawful and legitimate," Ashoka said, adding the Congress government should first "read the Constitution and understand it" before questioning the Governor's actions. PTI GMS SA