'Democracy under threat’: Siddaramaiah echoes Rahul Gandhi’s concerns on electoral misconduct

Taking aim at the Election Commission, Siddaramaiah said it was no longer functioning as an independent constitutional body.

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has backed Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s allegations of widespread electoral misconduct by the BJP, accusing the ruling party at the Centre of manipulating voter lists and weakening democratic institutions, including the Election Commission of India.

In an interview with PTI, Siddaramaiah said Gandhi was “speaking the truth” when he alleged that genuine voters were being removed from the electoral rolls and fake names were being added. “Such things have happened in Maharashtra, Haryana, and Karnataka,” the Chief Minister claimed, adding, “They are planning to do it in Bihar as well.”

He accused the BJP of engaging in deliberate electoral mischief and claimed the manipulation was occurring nationwide.

Taking aim at the Election Commission, Siddaramaiah said it was no longer functioning as an independent constitutional body.

“The Election Commission is working under the direction of the central government. It’s not independent. The Commission is supposed to function independently and fairly, but it is not doing so,” he said.

Declaring that democracy is “under threat,” Siddaramaiah announced that the Congress would soon launch a nationwide campaign to expose these alleged irregularities and press for electoral reforms to safeguard the integrity of the democratic process.

The Chief Minister also reiterated the need for a nationwide caste census.

“Every state should begin conducting a caste census. It should capture socio-economic, educational, employment-based, and political data. People need to know, after independence, what is the status of every individual, economically and politically, and whether equality has truly been achieved,” he said.

He emphasised that the purpose of the Constitution is to bring about change and eliminate inequality.

Siddaramaiah clarified that he is not the convenor of the OBC Advisory Committee but a member under Anil Jaihind’s leadership. Regarding Karnataka’s own caste census, he said the authorities have been given three months to complete the process and expressed hope that they would meet the deadline.

Speaking on the alleged site allotment scam involving the Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA), Siddaramaiah dismissed the charges as “false.”

“They are torturing me, my wife, and my family unnecessarily. This doesn’t even fall under the PMLA Act; there’s no money laundering, but still, they are harassing us,” he said.

Welcoming the Supreme Court’s strong remarks in the case, he added, “It looks like the court has rightly said, if you want to do politics, do it in elections, not here. Not through this case, not through the ED. This is a warning from the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court to the BJP.”

On the June 4 stadium stampede that killed 11 people, Siddaramaiah said the state cabinet had accepted the inquiry report submitted by retired High Court judge Justice Michael D’Cunha.

“Criminal cases have already been registered against officials of the Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA), Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB), and DNA, the event management agency, as well as police personnel,” he said. “Additionally, an inquiry will be conducted against the concerned police officers,” he added.