<p>Leader of the Opposition Siddaramaiah said Thursday that any thought of dividing Karnataka is "equivalent to betraying mother, motherland and mother tongue".</p>.<p>The Congress leader was reacting to Food & Civil Supplies Minister Umesh Katti's statement that after Prime Minister Narendra Modi's re-election in 2024, India would have 50 states with Karnataka be split into two. North Karnataka, according to Katti, will <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/state/karnataka-districts/north-karnataka-will-be-state-after-2024-lok-sabha-election-umesh-katti-1120414.html" target="_blank">become a separate state</a>.</p>.<p>"This is a very dangerous development," Siddaramaiah said in tweets. "Minister Umesh Katti holds a responsible position in the government. He will not comment unless there is some sort of development. If he has lied about such sensitive issue, he should be sacked from the Cabinet," he said, adding that this was not the first time Katti had made such statements.</p>.<p>"The BJP will have to take complete responsibility of the outcome of inflammatory statements made by Katti from the border areas of Belagavi," the former chief minister said. "Many Kannadigas had sacrificed everything to realise a unified Karnataka. To even think of dividing our State is equivalent to betraying mother, motherland and mother tongue," he said.</p>
<p>Leader of the Opposition Siddaramaiah said Thursday that any thought of dividing Karnataka is "equivalent to betraying mother, motherland and mother tongue".</p>.<p>The Congress leader was reacting to Food & Civil Supplies Minister Umesh Katti's statement that after Prime Minister Narendra Modi's re-election in 2024, India would have 50 states with Karnataka be split into two. North Karnataka, according to Katti, will <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/state/karnataka-districts/north-karnataka-will-be-state-after-2024-lok-sabha-election-umesh-katti-1120414.html" target="_blank">become a separate state</a>.</p>.<p>"This is a very dangerous development," Siddaramaiah said in tweets. "Minister Umesh Katti holds a responsible position in the government. He will not comment unless there is some sort of development. If he has lied about such sensitive issue, he should be sacked from the Cabinet," he said, adding that this was not the first time Katti had made such statements.</p>.<p>"The BJP will have to take complete responsibility of the outcome of inflammatory statements made by Katti from the border areas of Belagavi," the former chief minister said. "Many Kannadigas had sacrificed everything to realise a unified Karnataka. To even think of dividing our State is equivalent to betraying mother, motherland and mother tongue," he said.</p>
