BJP President Amit Shah took a jibe at the Janata Dal (Secular) and Congress coalition government in Karnataka by commenting that the state was being run by two-and-a-half chief ministers. "The Karnataka government is run by two and a half CMs. While chief minister H D Kumaraswamy has self-proclaimed that he is a clerk CM, the Congress legislature party leader Siddaramaiah is the super CM. Amidst them, the Deputy Chief Minister G Parameshwara is the half CM", Shah said on Thursday as per the Times of India. He was addressing the public in Devanahalli on the outskirts of Bengaluru.
He further questioned the commitment of people of Karnataka. "I’m surprised that Kumaraswamy says it is not the people of Karnataka, but Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi who made him the CM. I want to ask the CM - is your commitment to the people or to the feet of Congress leaders?” Shah said as per Deccan Herald.
Amit Shah and the BJP have been accused of trying to upstage the coalition government in the state. An audio tape released by CM Kumaraswamy earlier this month had made explosive allegations against him and the BJP.
The visit by Shah comes just months before the Lok Sabha elections in the country. The Congress has entered into a pre-poll alliance with the JD(S) in Karnataka and discussions to finalise the seat-sharing arrangement have begun. There is however discord between the two parties about the number of seats to be allotted to candidates from each party. In total, there are 28 Lok Sabha seats in Karnataka. This is also the only southern Indian state in which the Congress fared well in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections and it is eager to retain its foothold in the state