BJP Minister R Ashoka reacts to his candidature against DK Shivakumar in Kanakpura
Bengaluru: BJP on late Tuesday evening released its first list of candidates for the upcoming Karnataka elections. The saffron party has fielded Karnataka Revenue Minister R Ashoka against KPCC Chief DK Shivakumar from the Kanakpura assembly constituency.
Reacting to his candidature against the Congress strongman from Kanakpura, Ashoka said he was following the instructions of PM Modi and Amit Shah and added that he was a party warrior.
“My commanders PM Modi and Amit Shah have asked me to contest from two constituencies including Kanakpura,” he told reporters on Wednesday.
Ashoks further said, “I had been jailed for shouting slogans while protesting against then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi during the Emergency. I had also participated in the demolition of the Babri Masjid.”
Speaking about a possible defeat against DK Shivakumar, Ashoka said political stalwarts have also faced defeats in elections including Indira Gandhi, Deve Gowda, BS Yediyurappa and Siddaramaiah and asserted that it was the party’s strategy to give him tickets from two constituencies.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Cong's countrywide protest on Wednesday against VB-G RAM-G bill replacing MGNREGA
New Delhi (PTI): The Congress will hold protests across the country on Wednesday against the Centre's rural employment bill VB-G RAM G that seeks to replace MGNREGA, claiming it was a "BJP-RSS conspiracy" to dismantle a rights-based welfare scheme and attack Mahatma Gandhi's legacy, workers' rights and federal responsibility.
The opposition party's general secretary, organisation, K C Venugopal, in a letter to all state Congress presidents, urged them to organise protests at all district headquarters.
These protests must be held with portraits of Mahatma Gandhi, symbolising resistance to the erasure of his name and values, and highlight how the proposed law will impact the crores of beneficiaries of MGNREGA, he said in the letter.
"The combined attack on Gandhiji's legacy, workers' rights and federal responsibility exposes a larger BJP-RSS conspiracy to dismantle rights-based welfare and replace it with charity controlled from the Centre," Venugopal said.
The opposition has strongly objected to the introduction of the Viksit Bharat Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) (VB-G RAM G) Bill, 2025, when it was introduced in the Lok Sabha by Union Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Tuesday.
ALSO READ: National Herald Case: Delhi court refuses to take cognisance of ED chargesheet against Gandhis
The Congress and other opposition MPs also staged a protest in Parliament House complex over the Centre's move.
In the letter to the Congress state unit chief, Venugopal said that on December 28, the party's Foundation Day, programmes should be organised at all blocks and villages, with Mahatma Gandhi's portraits, reaffirming the party's commitment to the dignity of labour, social justice and the right to work.
"This is both a political and moral struggle. The Congress must lead from the front to defend MGNREGA, Gandhiji's legacy and the constitutional promise of justice for the poorest," Venugopal said in a post on X.
In his letter, he said the BJP government has taken an alarming and deliberate step by introducing a bill to repeal the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA).
"This is not a routine legislative exercise. It is a calculated political move to weaken a historical, rights-based people's law and to erase Mahatma Gandhi's name and values from India's most recognisable welfare legislation.
"This combined attack on Gandhiji's legacy, rights and federal responsibility exposes a larger BJP-RSS conspiracy to dismantle rights-based welfare and replace it with charity controlled from the Centre," he noted.
