On Tuesday, a committee was formed by the Union Government to look into the demand of conducting exams to fill clerical posts in Public Sector Banks (PSBs) in regional languages. This decision was made amid opposition and criticism by non-Hindi speaking candidates for only conducting them in English and Hindi. The exams have currently been postponed until the committee provides its report.
According to a report in the Times of India, the Institute of Banking Personnel Selection (IBPS) had put out an advertisement about the banking exams which would only be conducted in English and Hindi. This exam was being conducted to fill 3000 clerical posts in 11 PSBs, the report said. This move led to severe criticism claiming it to be unfair to non-Hindi speaking candidates and several of them demanded that the exams have to be conducted in regional languages also.
According to a report in The Hindu, after this, the Union Government put the exams on hold and appointed the committee. The report also cited a release by the Press Information Bureau which said that the recommendations by the committee will be given in 15 days and until then, the exams would be put on hold.
In the midst of this, former Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, on Tuesday, had accused the Union Government betraying Kannadigas by not allowing candidates to take the IBPS exams in Kannada. He had further called Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa a "mouse" for not standing up to the Centre on it. "Yediyurappa's followers call him Huli (Tiger) but in reality, he is ili (Mouse), he said in a tweet.
In a series of tweets with "#IBPSMosa" (#IBPSCheating) he hit out at the Union government and the state on the issue and demanded the resignations of Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, a Rajya Sabha member from the state, and also Yediyurappa if they cannot ensure justice to Kannadigas.
"Narendra Modi is betraying Kannadigas by not allowing candidates to take IBPS exams in Kannada. Latest notification by IBPS is an example for BJP's anti-Kannada stand. Central govt should immediately address this and ensure justice to Kannadigas," Siddaramaiah tweeted.
Noting that Karnataka has elected 25 MPs to the Lok Sabha, he asked "What are these MPs doing? Though slavery is abolished, BJP Karnataka MPs are behaving like slaves of Narendra Modi. Shame on them!!"
"Being elected to the Rajya Sabha from Karnataka, Nirmala Sitharaman has constantly betrayed Kannadigas and Kannada. She has continued the same with respect to IBPS exams. She is unfit to represent the people of Karnataka in Rajya Sabha. She should resign if she has any shame," he added.