Karnataka: Rajanna's sacking threatens 'pro-Dalit' stance of Congress, credibility of Siddaramaiah

The sacking of Karnataka cooperation minister K.N. Rajanna, a Scheduled Caste leader from Tumakuru, on the first day of the monsoon session of the state legislature, has the Siddaramaiah government on the back foot as the BJP claimed that the Congress party is showing its "true anti-Dalit" face. The saffron party dubbed the removal of two Dalit ministers—B Nagendra over allegations of corruption in the Valmiki Corporation scam and now Rajanna for refusing to toe the line of the party on the vote theft charges—as "Dalit victimisation".

Chief Minister Siddaramaiah removing Rajanna, one of his close aides, from the cabinet on Monday, reportedly following orders from the party high command, has raised questions over Siddaramaiah's own position and the stifling of Dalit voices within the party.

While Rajanna's unceremonious removal from the cabinet is being attributed to his recent comments on the voter fraud that directly challenged LOP in Parliament Rahul Gandhi's claims and narrative on the "vote theft", Rajanna's alleging a "conspiracy" against him for his sacking, has put the government and the party in a tight spot.

"When was the voter list made? It was made when we (Congress) were in power. What's the point of discussing it now? It is true that there have been illegalities and we should be ashamed as they took place right before our eyes. We should have examined when the draft electoral rolls were out. There has been voter fraud in Mahadevapura like duplicate voting, bulk voters in a single address. But it was our responsibility as the party and the government to file objections to the draft rolls," Rajanna had responded on the voter fraud issue, even as the Congress party had launched a national-level "Vote Chori" campaign, squarely accusing the Election Commission of "colluding" with the ruling BJP at the Centre for the vote.

After his sacking, Rajanna told the media that there was a "conspiracy" against him and he would reveal everything at an appropriate time. "There has been a misunderstanding, and I will explain it to Rahul Gandhi and K.C. Venugopal. It is the party's decision and we cannot question it," said Rajanna, even as his son and MLC Rajendra turned emotional and rushed to meet the chief minister after the sacking was made official by the governor's office on Monday evening.

BJP trains guns on state govt

On Tuesday, LOP in Assembly MLA R. Ashok said, "Rajanna has been punished for speaking the truth and busting Rahul Gandhi's false narrative."

State BJP president B.Y. Vijayendra alleged that the Congress constantly tried to silence the Dalit leaders in the party. "In Congress, truth is treated as a threat, especially when it comes from a leader of a marginalised community whose voice they have long tried to silence. The pattern is clear. In the case of ST Welfare Minister Nagendra, funds earmarked for the development of the community were siphoned off to finance Congress’s election expenses. Instead of holding the CM and DCM D.K. Shivakumar accountable, the blame was placed entirely on Nagendra, and the matter was quietly closed," said Vijayendra.

Referring to the Congress leadership stalling the Dalit ministers' dinner meeting organised by Home Minister G. Parameshwara recently, Vijayendra accused the Congress high command of "dictating" what the SC/ST ministers could do or not do.

"Even when SC/ST MLAs and ministers gather informally for a meal, the high command dictates that such meetings cannot happen without their physical presence, as though leaders from these communities cannot meet independently. This is the true face of Congress—anti-Dalit, anti-ST, anti-democratic and anti-truth," mocked the BJP leader.

The BJP further said Siddaramaiah, who claims to champion the 'Ahinda' (minorities, dalit and backward classes) stands exposed. "This has exposed the hollow claims of Siddaramaiah as he has never defended the Ahinda when targeted. Instead, he bows to the diktats of the Delhi High Command to safeguard his own position as the chief minister," alleged Vijayendra.

Interestingly, Congress MLC B.K. Hariprasad, an OBC leader and a vocal critic of Siddaramaiah, said, "When you are in politics, one has to face conspiracies, especially if you are from the SC, ST or OBC communities. This is a lesson for Rajanna. But I am sure he will not remain mum. I have known him since his Youth Congress days."

BJP leader from Valmiki (ST) community B. Sriramulu said Rajanna was dropped from the cabinet for his "straight forward" and "harsh" words. "The CM dropping him from the cabinet, yielding to pressure from some invisible hands, is an insult to the Valmiki community," he said.

In June 2024, Nagendra was forced to resign from the cabinet after the Valmiki Corporation scam—misappropriation (diversion) of Rs 187 crore allegedly to fund the Telangana assembly polls—was exposed. Nagendra was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate in July under money laundering charges and released on bail in October. The BJP has claimed that Nagendra was made the fall guy though the alleged scam was about the diversion of funds for elections. The opposition parties had demanded the chief minister, who is the finance minister, to resign.

Following the Stadium stampede incident that claimed 11 lives, the BJP had strongly condemned the suspension of then Bengaluru police commissioner B. Dayananda (also belonging to ST community), and accused the Siddaramaiah government of making the top cops the political "scapegoats", even as the citizens, retired cops, and Dalit organisations expressed their dismay over the suspension of an efficient and upright officer.

Congress: A  divided house

The removal of both Nagendra and Rajanna from the cabinet, against Siddaramaiah's will, has exposed the widening rift between the warring factions in the ruling party. The Shivakumar faction seems to have an upper hand. The high command not only stopped the various events organised by Siddaramaiah loyalists meant to bolster the image of the CM, but also stalled the implementation of the old caste survey (Kantharaj Commission report) and called for a fresh survey against Siddaramaiah's wish.

Rajanna openly endorsed Siddaramaiah as the chief minister for a full-term and often dismissed that there was a power-sharing arrangement, much to the chagrin of the rival camp. He also frequently reminded the High Command the need for replacing the KPCC president (Shivakumar) and asserted that he was one of the contenders for the party chief's post. He took the lead in voicing the Siddaramaiah camp's demand to dislodge Shivakumar as the party chief and also for the appointment of deputy CMs from the SC/ST and Lingayat communities. The rival camp saw it as an attempt to dwarf the stature of Shivakumar by creating "equals" within the party and the government.

"In 2013, Siddaramaiah's chief ministership had little interference. But now there are multiple power centres and the decision-making has become difficult," Rajanna had remarked over Siddaramaiah's "helplessness" within the party and the government.

During the state Budget session this year, the ST leader, on the floor of the House, made an explosive claim that 48 MLAs from across the political parties had been victims of honey trapping like him, forcing the government to order a CID probe. However, in July, the CID submitted a report stating there was no "substantial evidence" to prove Rajanna's allegations, and the BJP accused the government of a cover-up.

Recently, when AICC general secretary and Karnataka in-charge Randeep Singh Surjewala held closed-door individual meetings with party MLAs to get a feedback on the "performance" of the ministers and "utilisation of the development funds" in each constituency, in the absence of both the chief minister and the state party chief, Rajanna had openly expressed his discontent against Surjewala and once again made to the high command's bad books. Rajanna's remark on voter fraud—pinning the blame on the ruling Congress in the state (as block-level agents of INC and the state government are reponsible for closely monitoring the revision of draft rolls)—was the last nail in the coffin. The party high command not only asked the chief minister to remove Rajanna immediately but also warned of expelling him from the party.

The massive protests in Madhugiri on Tuesday with Rajanna's supporters threatening to resign en masse from the local bodies, is sure a cause for concern to the ruling Congress as the discontent and the sense of injustice among the Dalit community might snowball into a political avalanche that threatens to discredit Siddaramaiah as the tallest Ahinda leader as well as dent the party's Dalit votebank.