Karnataka seer alleges caste bias in Siddaramaiah’s last-day fund allocation
Bengaluru: Alleging caste-based favouritism in the allocation of funds for community centres, a seer has questioned former Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah’s commitment to social justice and equality.
The seer claimed that on the last day of his tenure, Siddaramaiah sanctioned funds in the name of backward communities but disproportionately benefited his own caste. Siddaramaiah hails from the Kuruba community.
Addressing the media on Thursday, Pranavananda Swamiji, president of the Forum of Heads of the Most Backward Class Maths, said he was objecting to the release of funds in favour of organisations linked to the Kuruba community. He claimed to possess a copy of an order issued by the Finance Department under which Rs 75 crore was released to 171 organisations and institutions.
Questioning Siddaramaiah’s repeated assertions on social justice and equality, Pranavananda Swamiji said, “Former Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has always spoken about equality and social justice. He claims to be a representative of the AHINDA communities and particularly of Dalits. If that is the case, how does this allocation reflect the principles of AHINDA?”
“In the list of beneficiaries, Category-1 and other backward communities have been included. However, nearly 60 to 70 per cent of the total funds have been allotted to organisations associated with the Kuruba community. Only a small portion of the funds has been given to communities such as Uppara, Madivala and even Vokkaligas,” he alleged.
The seer clarified that he was not opposed to the government allocating funds to any particular community.
“We are not against providing funds to any community. The government should support everyone. But the backward classes category includes not only the Kuruba community but also communities such as Ediga, Kumbara, Vishwakarma, Shivasimpi, Pinjara and many others. There are 104 communities classified under the backward classes. Despite this, nearly 60 per cent of the funds have gone to one community,” he said.
The seer further alleged that only eight community centres belonging to the Madivala community, two belonging to the Yadava community, one each belonging to the Helava and Savita communities received grants, while 89 organisations associated with the Kuruba community were sanctioned funds.
He also questioned the allocation of grants to institutions in Siddaramaiah’s home region, claiming that 13 community centres in T. Narasipura taluk received assistance. He further alleged that the Rakesh Siddaramaiah Trust in Gadag was sanctioned Rs 50 lakh.
Rakesh Siddaramaiah, the elder son of Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, passed away on July 30, 2016. He died at the Antwerp University Hospital in Brussels, Belgium, at the age of 39. His death was a result of multiple organ failure caused by acute pancreatitis.
According to the seer, officials informed him that the decision was taken a day before Siddaramaiah demitted office as Chief Minister. He claimed that out of Rs 138 crore reserved for backward classes welfare, Rs 78 crore was released in a single day, with a majority of the amount allegedly going to organisations linked to one community.
Responding to the allegations, Karnataka Home Minister Priyank Kharge said today in Bengaluru that the government had no intention of causing injustice to any community.
“We are not the government of any one community. Justice must be delivered to all communities. The responsibility of the government is to ensure fairness to everyone. At times, some communities may receive more funds and others less. Our government is still in office, and if any imbalance exists, we will rectify it. Necessary corrections will be made in the coming year,” Kharge said.