K’taka Polls Will be Fight Between Secularism and Communalism: CM

“We believe in secularism and are committed to it, while the BJP is a communal party,”said CM Siddaramaiah.

Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah during Special Assembly session in Bengaluru. 

(Photo: PTI)

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Saturday said that the "fight" in the upcoming Assembly polls in the state would be between two ideologies: Communalism and secularism.

He told reporters in Chikkamagalur:

It’s not Siddaramaiah versus BJP, it is not me versus Narendra Modi... it is not between Siddaramaiah and Yeddyurappa; it is between two ideologies: Congress versus BJP.

He termed the Congress a secular party and said, "We believe in secularism and are committed to it, while the BJP is a communal party."

"This is the ideological difference between the BJP and the Congress. The fight would be between communalism and secularism," Siddaramaiah said.

Assembly polls in Karnataka are scheduled this year.

The chief minister reiterated that the government would take stringent action against organisations instigating "communal sentiments" in the state.

The government, in accordance with the law, will be merciless against any organisation that instigates communal sentiments.

Siddaramaiah's comments came at a time when the coastal region of the state is on the edge over a spate of killings of "Hindu activists".

In the latest incident, 28-year-old Deepak Rao, who was associated with the Bajrang Dal and the VHP, was hacked to death by a four-member gang on Wednesday, following which simmering tension prevailed in Dakshina Kannada district.