Karnataka minister KN Rajanna sacked after controversial remarks on voter fraud

Karnataka Cooperation Minister KN Rajanna, who made a controversial statement on the vote fraud allegations in Mahadevapura that put the party and government in a serious predicament, submitted his resignation on Monday (August 11). Though initial reports said he resigned, later reports said he was asked to step down

Rajanna, it is learnt, had submitted his resignation letter from the ministerial post to the Chief Minister’s office around Monday afternoon. However, by evening, a letter from the Governor’s office reached the government stating that Rajanna had been removed from the Cabinet. It is said that before Rajanna tendered his resignation, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah had already decided to dismiss him and informed the Raj Bhavan.

The resignation comes in the wake of statements by Rajanna that embarrassed the party, with the Congress high command allegedly instructing him to step down over these remarks.

Following Rahul Gandhi's allegations of vote theft in Mahadevapura, Rajanna expressed dissatisfaction towards his party leaders, stating, "The voters' list was prepared during our government's tenure. It seems everyone was turning a blind eye."

Also Read: Rahul asks EC to share voter lists, video recordings from past 10 years

High command directive

Rajanna's statement that “when the election irregularities occurred in Mahadevapura, the Congress government was in power” caused significant embarrassment to the Rahul Gandhi-led national movement against electoral fraud.

The high command took Rajanna's statements seriously, especially as he spoke against the party while Congress was raising concerns about irregularities involving the BJP and the Election Commission.

The Opposition parties seized upon the opportunity and used Rajanna's statements to target the state government. His remarks caused considerable turmoil in the state's political landscape.

This allegedly led to the directive from the Congress high command to secure his resignation immediately.

Also Read: EC asks Rahul Gandhi to sign oath or apologise to nation over 'vote theft' claim

Party warnings ignored

Moreover, despite repeated warnings from the high command to avoid speaking publicly on internal party matters, Rajanna continued to state that he was ready to take over as KPCC president. He questioned why DK Shivakumar was not replaced after the Lok Sabha elections, openly signalling his dissatisfaction with both Shivakumar and the party leadership.

Rajanna was also the first to raise the 'Honey Trap' case in the Assembly, a move that stirred state politics. By publicly highlighting such sensitive issues without the high command’s consent, he put the party in a difficult position.

When the state Congress in-charge, Randeep Singh Surjewala, visited Bengaluru for a key meeting, Rajanna boycotted it, an act the party leadership viewed as a serious breach of discipline.

(This story originally appeared in The Federal Karnataka)