Karnataka Cooperation Minister KN Rajanna was sacked from the Cabinet on Monday afternoon. The Congress high command wanted him out for criticising party leader Rahul Gandhi over his ‘Vote Chori’ charge.
KN Rajanna had questioned the Congress party’s silence over the alleged voter list manipulation during the Congress government’s tenure in the state.
The Karnataka leader’s remarks come in the wake of the controversy that erupted after the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, alleged massive electoral fraud in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections and said there are over 1 lakh fake votes in the electoral rolls in Bengaluru Central Lok Sabha constituency.
Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar on Monday dismissed KN Rajanna’s claim that irregularities in voter lists occurred during the Congress-led tenure “right in front of our eyes”.
“Mr KN Rajanna is totally at fault. He doesn’t know. My Chief Minister and my party high command will reply to that,” D K Shivakumar told reporters in Bengaluru on Monday.
What did Rajanna say about ‘Vote Chori’?
Speaking to reporters, Rajanna said the voter list used in the Lok Sabha polls 2024 was prepared when Congress was in power. “If irregularities occurred, then why was no one speaking up at the time? Why did we remain silent?” Rajanna asked reporters, openly challenging his party colleagues.
The minister’s remarks came amid a political row after Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s recent ‘Vote Chori’ allegation that large-scale ‘vote theft’ took place in the last Lok Sabha elections.
The minister took the decision to resign after the Congress high command demanded action against Rajanna for criticising Rahul Gandhi’s ‘Vote Chori’ allegation, according to media reports.
Who is KN Rajanna?
Rajanna, 74, has served as Cabinet Minister for Cooperation in the Second Siddaramaiah Ministry since 2023. He is a Congress leader and a member of the Karnataka Legislative Assembly representing the Madhugiri seat.
Having begun his career in the cooperative sector, Rajanna has previously served as director of the National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India and president of the Karnataka State Co-operative Apex Bank Ltd.
CM Siddaramaiah has accepted the resignation of the minister. Rajanna is reportedly a close aide of Siddaramaiah. He resigned on the first day of the Monsoon session of the Karnataka legislature.
Rajanna was elected to the Karnataka Legislative Council for the first time in 1998 and served as MLC until 2004.
Rajanna was denied a Congress ticket to contest the 2004 Legislative Assembly election from Bellavi. He left the party and joined the Janata Dal (Secular), with whose ticket he successfully contested.
Rajanna won the assembly election again in 2013, this time from Madhugiri, and again in 2023 as a Congress candidate. In 2023, he won the Madhugiri seat as a Congress candidate. In May 2023, he was appointed a cabinet minister and was handed the Cooperation portfolio (excluding Agriculture Marketing).
Honeytrap Allegations
Rajanna had alleged a honeytrap racket targeting MLAs and ministers in Karnataka a few months ago. He urged state Home Minister G Parameshwara to order an investigation to expose the “producers, directors, and actors” behind the racket.
However, media reports claim that he received little support from anyone in the cabinet and even expressed his dissatisfaction with Siddaramaiah about the lack of progress in the investigation. This lack of cooperation, too, appeared to have angered Rajanna in recent months.
