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Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah hit back at Union Minister HD Kumaraswamy on Saturday, questioning his contributions to Mandya even as he reaffirmed his own role in organising and empowering AHINDA communities.
Speaking to reporters in Hassan, Siddaramaiah said he had played a "significant role" in strengthening AHINDA groups through guarantees and welfare schemes that benefitted workers, the poor, Dalits, minorities and women. Targeting Kumaraswamy, he asked, "He comes from a farmer's family. What has he contributed to the farming community?" The Chief Minister also raised concerns over Karnataka's declining GST revenue between September and November 2025, attributing the loss to the Union government's mid-year GST rate reduction. "Karnataka is estimated to lose nearly Rs 12,000 crore in GST collection this year. We had projected Rs 1.26 lakh crore, but we may not reach even Rs 88,000 crore," he said, adding that the Union Minister from Karnataka had not raised the issue in Parliament. Siddaramaiah criticised the Centre for withholding the Rs 5,300-crore grant announced for the Bhadra Upper River Project and for delaying permission to the Mekedatu balancing reservoir project. The delay by the Cauvery Water Management Authority, he said, amounted to "injustice to the people of Mandya". Defending his government's performance, the Chief Minister said, "Criticisms die, achievements remain." He noted that Rs 1.08 lakh crore had already been transferred directly to beneficiaries under guarantee schemes, countering allegations that the initiatives were financially unviable. "Prime Minister Narendra Modi claimed Karnataka would go bankrupt if guarantees were implemented. But we have delivered," he said. On the Supreme Court's remarks regarding women's reservation, Siddaramaiah reiterated that Karnataka has consistently supported the immediate implementation of the quota. "Why should the central government postpone it?" he asked. The Chief Minister said the government was committed to addressing human-wildlife conflict and assured legal action over the killing of a Congress worker in Chikkamagaluru linked to a banner dispute. Responding to political tensions within the Congress, he declined to comment on former minister K.N. Rajanna's remarks and said party leaders would abide by the high command's decisions. (ANI)
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