Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah
Credit: DH Photo
Bengaluru: Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Tuesday flayed the BJP for "spreading a false narrative" that his government was neglecting Kannada by giving more funds to Urdu.
"This is not just far from the truth — it is a deliberate attempt to create communal tension. It is unfortunate that a national party is acting like irresponsible internet trolls and spreading such baseless lies," Siddaramaiah said in a statement.
The CM was responding to numbers widely circulated on social media claiming that his government had set aside Rs 100 crore for Urdu against Rs 32 crore for Kannada, the state's official language.
Siddaramaiah said that for 2025-26, the government has allocated Rs 34,438 crore to the Department of School Education & Literacy, Rs 4,150 crore to schools under the Social Welfare and other departments. "That’s a total of Rs 38,688 crore — all meant for Kannada-medium education," he said.
"In addition, Rs 999.30 crore has been set aside to maintain government schools and improve infrastructure. All of this money supports Kannada education. So when BJP claims that only Rs 32 crore is given to Kannada, it is clearly a political lie meant to mislead the people," Siddaramaiah said.
"As for the Rs 100 crore given under the Minority Welfare Department — this is for upgrading Urdu-medium schools with better classrooms, teachers, textbooks and infrastructure. This is not just for language, but for the overall improvement of schools that serve a large number of students," the CM said.
Siddaramaiah argued that linking a language to one caste of religion was "disrespectful to that language".
"Our government respects all languages spoken in Karnataka. That is why we have separate academies for Tulu, Konkani, Kodava, Byari, and Arebhashe — each with Rs 80 lakh grants every year, plus extra funding for cultural activities," he said. "For us, Kannada is not just a language — it is our identity, pride, and mother tongue. Our government has always stood firmly for Kannada, for Karnataka, and for our people."