CM backs sanctioning Rs 10 cr for Priyanka Gandhi’s Wayanad constituency

Bengaluru, Aug 21 (PTI) Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Thursday extolled the value of generosity and humanity while endorsing allocating Rs 10 crore for Wayanad flood affected people in neighbouring Kerala.

Many people were killed and hundreds of families were rendered homeless due to the landslide in Wayanad on July 30, 2024.

The chief minister’s reaction came after Leader of Opposition in Karnataka Assembly R Ashoka said that the state government was setting a wrong precedence by allocating only Rs 95,000 to rebuild houses for the Karnataka flood affected people and Rs 10 lakh each for Wayanad landslide families.

Replying to him in the Assembly, Siddaramaiah said there was a massive flood in Wayanad.

"It’s obvious for states to come in support of each other in times of distress. We should be generous and human in this federal system," he said.

The CM added that he had announced giving Rs 10 crore last year in June itself when the calamity struck Wayanad, the constituency now represented by Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Wadra.

BJP MLA C N Ashwath Narayan sought to know what the state government would do for Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Kashmir, which was hit by cloud burst and massive landslip.

In reply, Siddaramaiah said the state government decided to help Kerala for being Karnataka’s neighbouring state.

The issue led to a war of words between Congress and the BJP on Thursday.

The BJP took a swipe at CM Siddaramaiah by calling him the 'Chief Minister of Kerala' for showing generosity towards Wayanad.

Taking to ‘X’ Ashoka made a sarcastic remark against Siddaramaiah by calling him the ‘Chief Minister of Kerala’.

"Congratulations to the Chief Minister of Kerala, Shri @siddaramaiah, for allocating a special grant of 10 crore rupees to the Wayanad Lok Sabha constituency represented by Priyanka Gandhi," he said.

He added that if Karnataka also had a ‘compassionate and large-hearted Chief Minister like Kerala's Chief Minister Shri Siddaramaiah’, all constituencies would have received abundant funding. Alas, Kannadigas are not as fortunate as Malayalis!” BJP state president B Y Vijayendra too flayed Siddaramaiah for his generosity towards Wayanad.

"CM @siddaramaiah avare, was it not you who campaigned in Delhi shouting “My Tax, My Right”, insisting Karnataka’s money must not leave the State? Yet today, you divert Rs 10 Crore of Kannadigas’ tax money to Wayanad in Kerala, just because it’s @priyankagandhi constituency," he charged.

"When the farmers reel under crop loss, when MLAs did not even get basic grants to lay foundation stones, when schools and colleges lack infrastructure, the Chief Minister claimed there is no money. But to please your high command, you generously gift crores outside Karnataka. This is not compassion, it is servitude," he said.

"A CM who announced Rs 15 lakh for an elephant attack victim in Kerala but finds no funds for Karnataka’s poor is now squandering our disaster fund to safeguard his chair. Please stop squandering our disaster fund to please your high command. Karnataka’s money belongs to Kannadigas, not to the Gandhi family’s political fortunes," he alleged.

Reacting to the Karnataka government’s decision, Karnataka Health Minister Dinesh Gundu Rao said there was nothing wrong in doing charity which is being done on humanitarian grounds.

"Karnataka gives thousands and thousands of crores of rupees to the Centre but what do we get in return? That’s the bigger question. Not these small-small things. These were all done out of humanitarian considerations," Rao said.

He said the people of Karnataka should always feel pride in themselves for being good to neighbours.

The minister alleged that these were all diversionary issues of the BJP, which was trying to create a divide between Karnataka and Kerala.

"We are all there for each other. When we do something out of humanitarian considerations, then that should not be looked at in a suspicious or negative manner," he advised.

When asked about the BJP’s objection regarding the Congress government in Karnataka funding Priyanka Gandhi’s constituency, Rao said Karnataka government has done so many things in many other states, such as Gujarat and Odisha.

"So many times, so many crises happen, and we contribute and support. This is a very narrow way of looking at things. I don’t think even people will appreciate it," the Minister said. PTI GMS GMS KH