BENGALURU: Karnataka Home Minister and senior Congress leader G Parameshwara on Monday criticized the NDA government for not including any MPs from backward classes and Dalit communities from the state in the Union council of ministers. He emphasized that this omission clearly indicated the neglect of these communities in the government formation process.
“It appears that the BJP/NDA does not want to represent backward classes and Dalit communities. Several elected representatives from these communities are part of their party in the state,” Parameshwara told reporters.
“They could have considered them, but it is left to their discretion. However, it is evident that these communities have been neglected,” the former president of the state Congress unit added.
Five members of Parliament from Karnataka were sworn into the council of ministers of the NDA government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday. Nirmala Sitharaman (representing Rajya Sabha) and Pralhad Joshi of the BJP, along with JD(S)’ H D Kumaraswamy, were appointed as cabinet ministers. BJP’s Shobha Karandlaje and V Somanna were inducted as ministers of state.
Sitharaman and Joshi are Brahmins, Kumaraswamy and Karandlaje belong to the dominant Vokkaliga community, and Somanna is from the influential Lingayat community.
The NDA secured 19 out of 28 Lok Sabha seats in Karnataka, with the BJP winning 17 and JD(S) two. The ruling Congress in the state won nine seats.
Congratulating the five MPs who became ministers, Parameshwara pointed out several state issues pending resolution before the central government, such as the GST share and irrigation projects requiring its approval.
“I’m confident that as the state’s representatives, they will prioritize these issues and strive to resolve them,” he said. “If they fail, it will be a setback for them and their party. We will wait and see… if our issues are not resolved, naturally, we will have to blame them.”
When asked about discussions within the ruling Congress in the state regarding the appointment of more deputy CMs based on community representation, Parameshwara clarified, “There is no such thing, no such discussions have happened. Just because someone speaks, it cannot be a party issue.”
He added that whatever the party leadership decides is final and if they feel there is a need for such a move, they will decide. Currently, D K Shivakumar from the Vokkaliga community is the only deputy CM in the Siddaramaiah-led cabinet.
