Will accept Stalin as leader: Alagiri
Madurai, Aug 30 : Expelled DMK leader and former Union Minister M.K. Alagiri on Thursday said he will accept his younger brother and party President M.K. Stalin as "leader" -- if he was taken back into the party.
Alagiri had publicly stated earlier that he cannot consider anyone as his leader other than the late M. Karunanidhi, his father and party President who died earlier this month.
Alagiri was expelled from the DMK by Karunanidhi for anti-party activities.
Speaking to reporters here, Alagiri said the current leadership of the DMK -- a reference to Stalin -- was not willing to re-admit him despite his requests.
He said the DMK did not consist just of the General Council, which has elected Stalin as the DMK President, and that "genuine party cadres" were with him.
Asked if he would accept Stalin's leadership, Alagiri said: "If I am in the party, then I will." In a show of strength, Alagiri is preparing to organise a rally in which he says over 100,000 people would take part.
On August 27, Alagiri warned in Madurai that if the DMK leadership did not take him back, then its leadership will have to face "consequences". He did not elaborate.
Alagiri was opposed to Stalin becoming the DMK President. After the death of his father, he spoke in riddles claiming that the DMK would face difficulties if it ignored him.
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Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah accuses EC of ‘bias’, defends state guarantee schemes ahead of bypolls
Bengaluru (PTI): Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has accused the EC of "double standards" and "bias" after it sought details on the state’s guarantee schemes in Davanagere and Bagalkot districts, where bypolls are scheduled for Thursday.
In a post on 'X' on Wednesday, Siddaramaiah said the Election Commission of India had asked the Karnataka government for information on fund releases under five ongoing guarantee schemes in the constituencies going to polls.
The polls were necessitated following the deaths of senior Congress MLAs Shamanur Shivashankarappa and H Y Meti, respectively.
The schemes are Gruha Jyothi, which provides 200 units of free electricity to every household; Gruha Lakshmi, offering Rs 2,000 to women heading families; and Anna Bhagya, supplying 10 kg of rice per month to each member of BPL families.
In addition, Yuva Nidhi grants Rs 3,000 to unemployed graduates and Rs 1,500 to unemployed diploma holders aged 18–25 for two years, while Shakti enables women to travel free of charge within Karnataka on government non-luxury buses.
Siddaramaiah alleged that the ECI had remained silent when similar cash transfer schemes were announced in Maharashtra and Bihar ahead of elections, calling the scrutiny of Karnataka’s schemes a "clear case of bias".
"In states like Maharashtra and Bihar, cash transfer schemes were announced or fast-tracked just before elections, directly benefiting voters. Yet the ECI remained silent. This is not neutrality—it is complicity," he said.
The CM accused the BJP and NDA governments of "a double standard", noting that when they act, the ECI "looks the other way", but when Karnataka fulfils its promises, it faces "intense scrutiny".
He added that targeting the state’s guarantee schemes is "not just political but anti-poor, anti-women, and anti-Karnataka."
Siddaramaiah clarified that these schemes were not launched in connection with the bypolls but are ongoing programmes implemented as part of the Congress government’s commitments from the 2023 Assembly elections.
Funds are transferred regularly to beneficiaries in a transparent and structured manner, he added.
"The guarantees are part of governance—a direct investment in human dignity, household stability, and economic participation, not inducement," he said.
He also accused the BJP of "hypocrisy", saying that while it criticises Karnataka’s schemes as "freebies", it rolls out similar programmes in states it governs.
"The Karnataka model has set a benchmark for the country. What is deeply concerning, however, is the ECI’s selective approach," Siddaramaiah added.
