In a political face-off on Wednesday, the Karnataka unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) staged a protest in Bengaluru, countering the sit-in demonstration held in Delhi by the ruling Congress party led by Chief Minister Siddaramaiah in what it claimed was its “fight for financial justice”.

The BJP, led by state president BY Vijayendra, staged a sit-in protest near Vidhana Soudha, rebuking the Congress government for its alleged failures, particularly in providing relief to drought-affected farmers and supporting milk producers.

Also Read:Karnataka Congress’s ‘Chalo Delhi’ protest at Jantar Mantar: What is the agitation about?

The protest was a response to the ongoing dharna initiated by the entire Karnataka cabinet at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi, led by Minister Siddaramaiah and Deputy CM DK Shivakumar. On the other hand, BJP leaders protesting in Kartnataka included former Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai, opposition leaders R Ashoka and Kota Srinivas Poojary.

BJP MP BY Raghavendra accused the Congress of orchestrating a ‘political drama’ to divert attention from its shortcomings, pointing out that the people and ruling party MLAs had lost confidence in the government due to a lack of developmental activities. Raghavendra, son of former Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa, suggested that the Congress was resorting to this drama to cover up its failures and was ill-prepared for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections.

Also Read:Ajit Pawar gets NCP’s name and ‘clock’ symbol, what lies ahead for Sharad Pawar?

Earlier in the day, the Congress-ruled Karnataka government launched the ‘Chalo Delhi’ protest in New Delhi, led by Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar. The sit-in protest staged at Jantar Mantar involved all Congress legislators and MPs from the state, with the chief minister inviting Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and Pralhad Joshi to address the alleged injustice caused to Karnataka.

The primary grievances raised by the Congress during the protest included reduced tax devolution, disproportionate resource distribution, and overall negligence by the Centre.

Also Read:‘Murder of democracy’: Sharad Pawar camp rebuffs EC’s order declaring Ajit’s faction as real NCP

Why did Congress stage a protest?

Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah has said that the main motive of the protests is to draw the attention of the central government and the nation towards Karnataka’s concerns. “So far, the state had never staged a protest in Delhi, but due to “unavoidable reasons”, a situation has come now, for it to do so,” he said.

The Congress party said that the agitation aims to counter the BJP by highlighting issues of regional pride and perceived injustice to Karnataka by the NDA government. They accuse the central government of treating Karnataka unfairly and disrespecting the federal structure.

Siddaramaiah pointed out that despite the doubling of the budget size, the state’s tax share had been reduced by more than half. The continuous increase in cess and surcharge, collected by states but not returned, is seen as a growing injustice. Environmental clearances for the Mahadayi and Mekedatu projects are pending, further aggravating the situation.

The Chief Minister condemned the discontinuation of compensation to states post-GST, claiming that Karnataka, a significant tax contributor, receives only a small portion of its tax revenue. He alleged that Karnataka’s tax share decreased from 4.71% to 3.64% between the 14th and 15th Finance Commissions, resulting in an estimated loss of Rs 62,098 crore over five years. The Finance Minister’s refusal of the recommended special grant of Rs 5,495 crore exacerbated the situation, causing Karnataka to miss out on a total of Rs 73,593 crore, including crucial projects.

Siddaramaiah also highlighted the severe drought affecting 223 out of 236 taluks in Karnataka. He stated that the state has requested Rs 17,901 crore in compensation, but the Centre has not provided any relief, leaving the actual crop damage loss at Rs 35,000 crore.