Congress speaking in language of separatists: Sitharaman

Union finance minister (FM) Nirmala Sitharaman on Wednesday lashed out at the Congress government in Karnataka for “speaking in the language of separatists” while vehemently refuting allegations that the Union government has withheld funds and grants for the state, including monies sought  for drought relief.

“The state government is speaking asatya (untruth)... The Congress is standing with those who have a separatist mentality,” she said. In a sharp attack against Congress lawmaker DK Suresh, the FM said his statement that southern states are not getting their due smacks of secessionists tendencies.

Last week, while reacting to the interim Union Budget, Suresh stoked controversy by accusing the Centre of neglecting the southern states in fund distribution. His statement that there was a possibility of demanding a separate nation if the perceived injustice was not rectified promptly was criticised by the Bharatiya Janata Party and found a mention in Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s speech in the Rajya Sabha on Wednesday while he was replying to the President’s Address.

Accusing the Congress of not condemning the statement, the FM said it was an attempt to create cleavage between states.

“The Congress is standing with those who want to break the country... a few years ago, their former president Rahul Gandhi stood with the ‘tukde tukde’ gang in Jawaharlal Nehru University,” she said. The minister said the comments made by Suresh, who is also Karnataka deputy CM DK Shivakumar’s brother, have been repeated by several other people as well. “Karnataka citizens are proud to contribute to the country. They want to be a part of the development process. The separatism sentiment is of the political party. The Congress is speaking against the common people,” she said.

Addressing the media, the FM said the claims made by the state government about not having received their dues in addition to their demand for funds for drought relief are baseless.

“For disaster relief, ₹12,476 crore was given to Karnataka during the 15th Finance Commission. They have ignored this. And they came up with an advertisement that said not even a penny for drought relief was paid,” she said.

Taking potshots at CM Siddaramaiah, the FM said, “This is a CM who has presented 13 state budgets, and for him to speak as though he doesn’t understand what the finance commission...  means it  has reached a stage where it (the state) is realising that it cannot fulfil guarantees.”

She said in July 2023, the deputy CM said the government has had to set aside ₹40,000 crore for five guarantees (promised in its manifesto) and cannot provide for development. “Then on January 9, Basavraj Rayareddi, CM’s own economic advisor, said the guarantees have become a huge financial burden for the government and as much as ₹58,000 crore has been earmarked for these. They understand it is mounting on them,” she said.

The FM said the Union government had cautioned that the Congress has not accounted for the money to be earmarked for the guarantees when the party made the announcement in the run up to the state polls. “Based on the back of the envelope calculation, we had said it will cost them ₹60,000 crore. They gave guarantees without knowing how they were going to fund  it...” she said.

The FM said the state government, unable to fund the guarantees, is now shifting the blame to the Centre and giving people the wrong impression that the Union government is withholding funds.

“He claims ₹5,495 crore, a special grant recommended by the 15th Finance Commission, has not been given. The recommendation was not part of the final report. The question of not accepting the recommendation does not arise,” she said.

The FM said over and above what was to be given, ₹6,279.94 crore has been given to Karnataka as interest free loan for 50 years to assist in capital expenditure plans.

 “During the 13th Finance Commission, the period from 2010-11 to 2014-15; ₹61,691 crore was given; during the 14th commission, ₹1,51,309 crore was given and during the 15th Finance Commission period, between 2020-21 till January 2024, ₹1,29,854 crore was given. And we have another two years to go.. (for a five-year comparison – ₹1,74,339 has been given),” she said.

Comparing the release of monies to the state during the UPA and the NDA’s 10-year tenure, she said the state got ₹2,85,452 crore between 2014 and January 2024. “During 2004-2014 under the UPA, it got ₹81,795 crore. This is a 250% increase or three times that they got in the last 10 years,” she said.

The FM said besides tax that is devolved, grants are given to states, and during the UPA rule, the grant in aid was ₹60,779 crore while in the last 10 years, it was ₹2,08,832.02 crore.

“They are budgeted to get grant in aid of ₹18,005 crore...At the end of 10 years, the state would be getting ₹2,26,837 crore,” she said, adding that the state government, in order to inflate their claims and falsely claim more losses, has included shortfalls for the next two years. “A lot of numbers have been imagined,” she said.

The FM  said the state has also  received a revenue deficit grant of ₹1,631 crore. “What the state ignored...it received a revenue deficit grant of ₹1,631 crore. Kerala and others have got it too. It was recommended by 15th FC. But states such as MP, Gujarat, UP and Bihar did not get this,” she said. Karnataka also got ₹2,671 crore which was “kept unresolved since 1996”.