CM Siddaramaiah labels Kumaraswamy 'Manuvadi' over Bhagavad Gita curriculum push
Bengaluru (PTI): Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Saturday took a swipe at Union Minister H D Kumaraswamy, by calling him a "Manuvadi" after his alliance with the BJP, for seeking the inclusion of Bhagavad Gita in the curriculum for students.
The CM's dig came in response to Kumaraswamy's recent letter to Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, requesting the inclusion of the Bhagavad Gita in the curriculum of students, as it will inspire and motivate youth to grow into responsible citizens from their student days and excel globally.
"After Kumaraswamy joined hands with the BJP for elections, he has become a Manuvadi," Siddaramaiah told reporters here after paying tributes to B R Ambedkar on his 69th death anniversary here.
Remembering Ambedkar, Siddaramaiah highlighted his contribution to the Constitution and his relentless fight to provide social justice.
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The CM noted that Ambedkar, fed up with the social and caste system in Hinduism, and unable to reform it, accepted Buddhism.
He said, "Ambedkar, towards the end of his life, quit Hinduism and joined Buddhism. He had said -- he was born in Hinduism, but cannot die in Hinduism, because he could not reform Hinduism, despite several efforts, so he accepted Buddhism."
Meanwhile, reacting to the CM's comments, Kumaraswamy, speaking to reporters in Mandya, said Siddaramaiah's intention was to create a rift between communities.
"In what contest have I said? Have I asked for everyone to be converted? What is Manuvadi in it? His (Siddaramaiah) intention was to create a rift between communities. Is he a big Samajwadi (socialist)?... He has been enjoying power in the name of AHINDA (Kannada acronym for minorities, backward classes, and Dalits) for ten years. What has he done to the community?"
Responding to this, Shiddaramaiah, speaking to reporters in Hassan, asked what Kumaraswamy's contribution to Mandya (his Lok Sabha constituency) and Karnataka, being a union minister. He further asked what he did when it came to compensation for GST losses to the state and Mekedatu project.
Stating that he organised AHINDA, the CM further said all the five guarantee schemes are for the people, which includes AHINDA, poor, woman, working class.
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Congress using hijab issue to pacify minority anger, alleges Karnataka LoP R Ashoka
Bengaluru: Leader of Opposition in the Assembly R. Ashoka has accused the Congress government of using the hijab issue to placate what he described as discontent among minority voters after the Davanagere by-election.
In a post on X on Wednesday, Ashoka alleged that the state government, instead of addressing issues such as price rise, corruption, farmers’ distress and law and order, was attempting to retain its minority vote base by reviving the hijab issue.
Referring to the 2022 dress code introduced by the BJP government, which prohibited hijab in schools and colleges, Ashoka said the Karnataka High Court had upheld the policy and emphasised the importance of discipline in educational institutions.
He questioned the Congress government’s move to revisit the issue and asked whether setting aside the court-backed policy to benefit one community could be described as secularism.
Ashoka further alleged that while the government was willing to permit hijab, it continued to prohibit saffron shawls.
He accused the government of dividing students on religious lines rather than treating schools and colleges as spaces of equality.
Drawing a comparison with Mamata Banerjee’s government in West Bengal, Ashoka claimed that excessive appeasement politics had harmed the state and warned that the Congress in Karnataka could face a similar political response.
He said voters in Karnataka would teach the Congress a lesson for what he termed “vote-bank politics” and for compromising constitutional and judicial principles.
