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Karnataka’s Minister for Large and Medium Industries MB Patil on Wednesday, October 29, alleged that the state has lost major industrial projects due to the Union government’s preferential treatment of BJP-ruled states through heavy incentives. Speaking to reporters at the Congress Bhavan in Mysuru, Patil said the Union government was favouring states aligned with the BJP and accused it of diverting investors away from Karnataka.
Patil alleged that the Narendra Modi-led government had offered a Rs 22,000 crore incentive to Andhra Pradesh, prompting Google to invest there. “It is clearly a gift from Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Chandrababu Naidu for supporting the BJP,” he said. He also pointed out that a semiconductor plant originally planned for Mysuru was shifted to Gujarat after the Union government announced a Rs 50,000 crore incentive, adding that Maharashtra and Gujarat were among the states receiving such “massive benefits.”
He further alleged that a company which had initially shown interest in investing in Karnataka’s semiconductor sector changed its plans after visiting Delhi. “The Union Government should put an end to this kind of discrimination,” he said, claiming that the Union government was “sending investors to the states of their choice.”
Patil maintained that Karnataka continued to provide a conducive environment for industries, with investor-friendly policies and skilled human resources. “We have the best talented human resources. The industrial policies are also good and they are investor-friendly. So no existing industries are moving out of Karnataka and people should come out of this false imagination and publicity,” he said.
He said the state received commitments worth Rs 10.27 lakh crore during the Global Investors Meet held in February, with 60% of it already invested, generating thousands of jobs. “After I became Minister, I have been visiting different countries and bringing investors to our state. A huge company like Foxconn has established its unit here after Taiwan. Expensive mobile phones are getting exported from here,” he added. Patil also cited confirmation of a Rs 10,500 crore investment from Chinese firm Hosokava, saying the process was progressing smoothly.
His remarks echoed those of IT and BT Minister Priyank Kharge, who had earlier accused the Union of “arm-twisting” and “poaching companies” from Karnataka.
Speaking to The Print, Kharge had said that despite Karnataka housing 38-40% of India’s tech talent, the Union government was diverting semiconductor and AI-related projects to states “that require at least five to ten years more to build an ecosystem.” He also alleged that in just over a month, three semiconductor firms interested in Karnataka were compelled to move to other states, the report added.
Similar complaints of bias against the Union government have also been raised by the non-BJP governments of Tamil Nadu and Telangana, who have alleged that the Union was favouring BJP-ruled states in the allocation of key industrial projects.