CM Siddaramaiah flexes muscle, praises his contributions to Kuruba community amid tenure speculations

Bengaluru: Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Wednesday extolled his contributions to his Kuruba community at an event where he received cross-party support amid speculation about his tenure.

Siddaramaiah was speaking after laying the foundation stone for a new student hostel of the Kurubara Sangha at Gandhinagar.

Delving into history, Siddaramaiah said it was he who helped the Kurubara Sangha survive by ensuring the ouster of "rowdy Puttaswamy" despite facing threats from him in the 1980s.

Siddaramaiah said the celebration of Kanaka Jayanti was initiated when he was the transport minister in 1988. The CM also highlighted his role in the establishment of the Kaginele Kanaka Gurupeetha in 1992.

"I have done so much for Kurubas. I have also worked for the upliftment of Dalits, other backward classes and minorities," Siddaramaiah said.

Pointing out that he has "never done casteism", Siddaramaiah said: "I've worked for the poor among Lingayats, Vokkaligas and Brahmins."

Siddaramaiah said he had always stood against "Manuvada" and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). "They are Sanatanavadis and Manuvadis. They divided society into castes: Brahmana, Kshatriya, Vyshya and Shudra," he said. "Our government introduced the guarantee schemes to end this inequality," he said.

Seeking the support of the 50-lakh-strong Kuruba community, Siddaramaiah said people of all castes and classes loved him. "You've given me suppprt for the last 45 years. I want your blessings to continue," he said.

Urban Development Minister BS Suresha (Byrathi) said Siddaramaiah enjoyed the "affection" of the Congress high command. "Becoming the CM twice is unnatural in Congress. Siddaramaiah became the CM with the support of MLAs and the affection of Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, Mallikarjun Kharge and KC Venugopal," he said.

Suresha expressed confidence that Siddaramaiah would continue as the CM. "Both Siddaramaiah and (deputy CM) DK Shivakumar are like brothers. The high command will decide on what's to be done," he said.

BJP leaders Raghunath Rao Malkapure and Varthur Prakash hailed Siddaramaiah's leadership.

Prakash said Siddaramaiah had the support of 100 Congress MLAs. "If something happens, the entire Ahinda (minorities, Dalits and backward classes) must hit the streets," he said. "I also urge Siddaramaiah to see to it that his son becomes the CM."