Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah refused to enter a temple despite repeated requests from the priest, a video shared by BJP alleges.
The 39-second clip which went viral shows the Congress leader near the entrance of the temple, but he does not set foot inside, rather sending in Minister for Large and Medium Industries M B Patil. The clip also seemingly shows Patil entreating Siddaramaiah to enter, which he appears to turn down.
Attacking Siddaramaiah, BJP's C T Ravi said, "Karnataka Chief Minister refuses to enter a temple despite his minister and priest requesting to come inside and seek the darshan of the deity."
"You, who go to mosques and dargahs, put all that they have given you on my face and give them money, you did not have enough time to devote yourself to the goddess for the good of the country," Ravi added.
The state BJP unit also criticised the Chief Minister saying, "[Rs] 10,000 crores to minorities but Rs 1 to Ram Mandir. This is the real face of Election Hindu CM Siddaramaiah who did not even donate."
Siddaramaiah had lashed out at the BJP on Wednesday, over its protest against the arrest of a Hindu activist in Hubballi in connection with a 31-year-old case related to Ram temple agitation, saying leaders of the opposition party need to understand that assigning caste and religious labels to criminals is extremely dangerous.
Earlier Karnataka police had arrested a person who was allegedly involved in the riots after the demolition of Babri Masjid in Ayodhya. Today the BJP staged protests across the state over the arrest.
The arrest ruffled BJP's feathers in Karnataka with the party claiming that the Congress is terrorising Hindu activists.
Karnataka BJP President B Y Vijayendra went to the extent of accusing the state government of being "anti-Hindu".
Published 03 January 2024, 09:53 IST