Karnataka elections 2023: Modi factor won’t work in assembly polls, says Siddaramaiah, points to anti-incumbency

Bengaluru: Karnataka Congress leader Siddaramaiah on Friday said the “Modi factor” will not have any impact in the forthcoming Karnataka Assembly polls and also indicated that he expects the Muslim community to back his party by going in for tactical voting.

The former chief minister added that the assembly elections would be contested on local issues and insisted a victory in the southern state would serve as a stepping stone for the Congress in national politics ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

In an interview to news agency PTI, Siddaramaiah said this will be his last electoral contest, and he expects 90 per cent of Muslim voters to back the Congress, given that the ruling BJP is facing a strong anti-incumbency wave in the southern state.

The veteran Congress leader also ruled out any differences with state Congress president and fellow chief minister aspirant DK Shivakumar, as he asserted anyone can aspire to such posts.

“The Modi versus Rahul contest is there at the national level mainly because people are projecting like that, but it is the fight between two ideologies — communal and secular politics. PM Modi’s visits will not make any impact on the voters of Karnataka, because this is a state election, this is not a national election. The main issues the people are going to consider are local issues and the misrule of the BJP government,” the Congress leader said.

On Whether Muslims, who constitute 10-12 per cent of the population, will opt for tactical voting in favour of the Congress party in Karnataka, as they did for Mamata Banerjee in West Bengal in 2021, Siddaramaiah said, it looks like in Karnataka also Muslims have decided that the Congress party will return to power and they have faith in the Congress party and its leadership.

“Congress is the only party that safeguards the interest of the minorities in the state. More than 90 per cent of votes we are expecting from the Muslim community and the Christian community also,” he clarified.

Asked whether the Congress is open to the idea of aligning with JD(S) in case of a hung assembly, he said that question will not arise in the southern state. “That question does not arise at all. People are fed up with the coalition government and the ruling BJP. They want Congress to come to power, they have decided to give it an opportunity,” he said.

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