Congress leader Rahul Gandhi tells Karnataka to give only 40 seats to 40% government

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi appeals to people to give minimum 150 seats to Congress in the 224-member Assembly, leaving no space for BJP’s post-election manoeuvres to capture power in Karnataka through the back door

Alleging widespread corruption in Karnataka under the BJP, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi called upon the people to give only 40 seats to the ruling party that ran a ‘40% commission government’. Campaigning for the May 10 Karnataka Assembly elections, he appealed to people to elect Congress with a minimum of 150 seats, leaving no scope for BJP to purchase MLAs to form the government again.

“You have to give 40% commission to get your work done, however big or small it might be. Contractors’ Association wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi about it but Mr. Modi, who speaks volumes against corruption in his speeches, did not even give a single-line reply to the letter. BJP MLA’s son was caught [in the office of Karnataka Soaps and Detergents Limited] with ₹8 crore, there is a series of scams in the recruitment of Assistant Professors, Assistant Engineers, Junior Engineers and Police Sub-Inspectors, and yet Mr. Modi does not utter a word about it, They [BJP] are taking 40% commission from you, and you should give only 40 seats to them in this election,” Mr. Gandhi said.

Mr Gandhi addressed public meetings in Bhalki and Humnabad on April 17, and the contents of his speech in the two places were almost similar.

Alerting the people of BJP’s designs to purchase elected representatives to form a government after the elections, Mr. Gandhi appealed to the people to give Congress full majority with minimum 150 seats, leaving no space for BJP’s post-election manoeuvres to capture power through the back door.  

Strongly arguing for removal of the 50% reservation cap, he said, “Mr. Modi alleged that I have insulted OBCs. I never insult anybody. I question why Mr. Modi, who talks of the development of OBCs, has hidden the 2011 caste census data. If the data related to caste is released, we will come to know the population size of every community, and formulate better programmes to involve them. I demand removal of the 50% reservation cap. I demand reservation to Dalits and Adivasis proportionate to their population percentage. I am sure Mr. Modi and BJP would never do it. If they can’t, let them get aside, and we will do it.”

Attacking BJP for its ‘false promises’ that never materialised, Mr. Gandhi said that Congress would fulfil its four promises – a monthly payment of ₹2,000 to every woman head of the family, 200 units of free electricity to every family every month, 10 kg of rice free of cost under Anna Bhagya scheme, and monthly unemployment compensation of ₹2,000 to graduates and ₹1,500 to diploma holders for two years — on the first day of forming the government.

“BJP promised ₹15 lakh and 2 crore jobs every year. Did you get either? We should not give false promises. Congress makes promises, it fulfils them. We will fulfil these four promises on the first day of assuming office. These promises would benefit the vast majority of poor and weaker sections, and not billionaires like Gautam Adani,” he said.