Each MLA in Karnataka to get ₹50 crore for developmental work in their constituency: Report

Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar announced ₹50 crore for each MLA's constituency to support development.

Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar on Friday announced that the state government has earmarked ₹50 crore for each MLA's constituency to support developmental activities across Karnataka. The allocation, part of the state’s broader budget strategy, is intended to fund infrastructure, rural development, and projects at the discretion of individual legislators, news agency ANI reported.

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah with his deputy DK Shivakumar. (ANI) (HT_PRINT)

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The DCM clarified that the funds, totaling approximately ₹8,000 crore, would be distributed without party bias. "We had made this decision in the budget. About ₹8000 crores of funds were allocated for this. We will give this fund to the ruling and opposition MLAs. The funds have been given for public works, rural development, and the discretion of the MLAs," Shivakumar said, as quoted by the agency.

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Despite this assurance, the opposition BJP has fiercely criticized the move, accusing the Congress-led government of using public funds for political gain by allegedly favouring its own party MLAs.

In a strongly worded post on X, BJP state president BY Vijayendra Yediyurappa accused the Congress of political favoritism. “Are you the Chief Minister for Congress MLAs or for the state of Karnataka? In an attempt to save your wobbling Chief Minister’s chair, to pacify the internal discontent within Congress, and to satisfy disgruntled Congress MLAs, you have released ₹50 crore in funding under the Chief Minister’s Constituency Development Program exclusively for the constituencies of Congress MLAs," he wrote in the post.

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Vijayendra further alleged that the move violated the principles of fairness and democratic governance. Continuing his criticism, the BJP leader claimed that the Congress government has failed to initiate any meaningful development work since taking office. Vijayendra argued that in a functioning democracy, opposition parties have a responsibility to highlight the government's missteps. He also attributed Congress’s national decline to what he described as its disregard for democratic values.

(With inputs from ANI)