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Karnataka’s ₹10 crore grant for landslide relief in Wayanad spurs row
Karnataka's ₹10 crore aid for Kerala's landslide victims faces BJP criticism as politically motivated ahead of elections; CM defends it as humanitarian.
The Karnataka government’s decision to allocate an additional ₹10 crore for landslide rehabilitation in Kerala’s Wayanad district has drawn criticism from the Opposition Bharatiya Janata Party, which has questioned the timing of the move ahead of the Kerala assembly elections.
The grant, included in the third and final instalment of supplementary estimates for 2025–26 presented in the Assembly on Monday, is aimed at supporting families affected by the 2024 landslide in Meppadi.
This marks the second such allocation by the Congress-led government in the current financial year. In August 2025, during the first supplementary estimates, ₹10 crore was set aside to assist around 100 affected families in the same region.
Leader of Opposition R Ashoka, in a post on X, referring to chief minister Siddaramiah as the “Keralam chief minister” and alleging that the funds were intended to “please high command leaders and save his chair.” He added that if Karnataka had such a “broad-hearted and sensitive” chief minister, every constituency in the state would have received adequate funding, saying Kannadigas were “not as fortunate as the people of Keralam.”
The decision follows an earlier controversy in February 2024, when the Karnataka government announced compensation of ₹15 lakh for a victim of an elephant attack in Wayanad.
Defending the latest allocation, Siddaramaiah said the decision was guided by humanitarian considerations. “There is no merit in the criticism made by the opposition parties. This is a decision taken purely from a humanitarian perspective. We are in a federal system. It is our duty to help our neighbouring states in distress. This should not be seen in a political dimension,” he said.
The supplementary estimates also include provisions for other expenditures. An additional ₹20 lakh has been allocated as remuneration for Senior Advocate Kapil Sibal for appearing on behalf of the Karnataka government before the Supreme Court in connection with a Writ Petition. A further ₹40 lakh has been earmarked for his appearance in SLP (Civil).
In addition, ₹10 crore has been set aside for a visit by Karnataka government delegates to Davos-Kloster, Switzerland, to attend the World Economic Forum’s Annual Meeting 2026.
