'Five guarantee schemes will not be stopped': Siddaramaiah slams BJP for "false propoganda"

Bengaluru: Former Karnataka Chief Minister and member of the Congress Working Committee (CWC) Siddaramaiah has reaffirmed that the Congress party's "five guarantee schemes" will remain in place under any circumstances.

Seeking to clarify what he described as "false propaganda" by the opposition, Siddaramaiah assured beneficiaries that the programs are secure and would be continued if Congress return to power in the next election.

In an X post, he further labelled the BJP as an "anti-poor party," accusing them of opposing these welfare measures from the outset and spreading rumours due to "political frustration"


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"The five guarantee schemes will not be stopped under any circumstances. Not just for the next two years - we will return to power in the next election, and the schemes will continue even after that. From the very beginning, we have been working to correct the shortcomings noticed in their implementation, and that process continues even now. Beneficiaries of these schemes need not be anxious by listening to the Opposition's false propaganda," he said.

"The BJP is fundamentally an anti-poor party. It has opposed the guarantee schemes from day one. First, they said it was impossible to implement them. Later, they claimed that the government would go bankrupt due to a lack of funds. Now, they are spreading rumours that the guarantee schemes will be stopped. This only reflects their political frustration," he added.

Reflecting on his tenure as the CM, Siddaramaiah said that he made sure to implement the guarantee schemes without putting "adverse affect" on Karnataka's economy.

He further questioned, "Today, Karnataka ranks first in the country in per capita income and stands second only to Maharashtra in GST collection. If the treasury were empty and the government were bankrupt, would these achievements have been possible?"

Escalating his allegations against the BJP, he claimed that it adopted the Karnataka governance model in several BJP-ruled states.

"The BJP, which has been opposing our guarantee schemes, has copied the same model in Madhya Pradesh, Bihar and West Bengal to come to power. What moral right do they have to oppose guarantee schemes? Although the BJP has promised such schemes ahead of elections in some states, it has not been able to implement them fully," he said.

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Siddaramaiah further asserted that these "schemes must reach the truly eligible beneficiaries. When ineligible people misuse them, it is the duty of an elected government to prevent it. Our people must also think about this. Cheating the government out of greed to avail the benefits of guarantee schemes is not only a violation of the law, but also a betrayal of the people of the state"

He called upon the opposition to help the state government in implementing these schemes, "instead of spreading false propaganda for political gain".