On Wednesday, September 15, Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj S Bommai created a stir as he referred to BJP MP Subramanian Swamy as a “freelance politician”. Speaking at a debate in the Karnataka Assembly, the CM said that Swamy’s character and forte has been to speak against his own party and its leadership.
“You know well about Subramanian Swamy. Whichever party he is in, he is like a freelance politician. He says whatever comes to his mind. Based on his analysis, he keeps saying things,” Basavaraj S Bommai said.
Bommai said Swamy spoke against the leadership of the Janata Party and then Janata Dal as well. “While being in the government, he spoke against the then Prime Minister Chandrashekhar. It is the character and forte of Subramanian Swamy,” he added.
Karnataka CM comment on Subramanian Swamy came after Siddaramaiah mentioned latter’s Tweet where he shared fake data about petrol prices in India
The Karnataka Chief Minister’s remark came after the leader of opposition Siddaramaiah cited a tweet by Subramanian Swamy from February, wherein the BJP leader had shared fake data about petrol prices in India.
Swamy had in February taken a jibe at petrol prices in India by invoking the Ramayana. He said that petrol cost Rs. 92 in “Ram’s India”, Rs 53 in “Sita’s Nepal” and Rs 51 in “Ravan’s Lanka”. OpIndia had then written in detail how the disgruntled leader’s Tweet, which could only be described as a ‘WhatsApp forward’, was far away from reality.
It’s no secret that Subramanian Swamy has been irritated by his exclusion from the government, as he was hoping to be a minister in the Modi govt. He is frequently seen on social media spreading misinformation and baseless allegations. He recently floated conspiracy theories, claiming that the siege of the Red Fort on Republic Day was a PMO plot. He also launched an anti-vaccine tirade in response to the Modi government’s Covid-19 vaccine drive.
Meanwhile, quoting this Tweet, Siddaramaiah had taken a dig at the BJP Govt for the rising fuel prices and its cascading impact on other commodities. The senior Congress leader and former Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, who had recently, with other Congress leaders, embarked on a protest march in bullock carts against the price of fuel, LPG cylinder, and daily commodities, quipped in the Assembly: “It’s not me who has said this but Subramanian Swamy, who is a sitting Rajya Sabha member of the BJP. He was your father’s (former CM Late SR Bommai) friend.
He had also challenged the BJP leadership to sack Swamy if he was not right. “I have no objection if the BJP leadership tolerates his statement. Don’t forget that he is an economist and you have made him your Rajya Sabha member,” Siddaramaiah said.
To this, Bommai acknowledged that indeed Swamy is a genius in economics and the party has always given him due credit.
Subramanian Swamy hits back at Karnataka CM
However, Bommai’s remark did not go done well with Subramanian Swamy, who has off late been extremely critical against his own party and has not wasted any chance to take pot-shots against the Modi government.
Swamy in a Tweet hit back at the Karnataka CM saying that he did not rise in politics by “bootlicking but by propagating the truth”.
Karnataka CM Basavaraj Bommai calls Subramanian Swamy a ‘freelance politician’ —
— Subramanian Swamy (@Swamy39) September 16, 2021
I did not become six term MP[3 in LS] and twice in Minister rank by boot-licking but by propagating the truth essential for a vibrant democracyhttps://t.co/E1JOlw8a21
Karnataka Congress ride bullock carts to protest rising fuel prices
Lately, the Karnataka Congress has been using the high fuel prices in India as a tool to launch an attack on the BJP government. On August 13, several Congress leaders rode on bullock carts to the Karnataka Vidhana Soudha to mark their protest against the price of fuel, LPG cylinder, and daily commodities. Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) President D.K. Shivakumar and Opposition leader Siddaramaiah and several other key leaders joined in the protest and travelled to the state assembly in bullock carts.
However, while they were at it, two Congress MLAs, Venkataramanappa and BK Sangamesh fell off the bullock carts in the melee witnessed during the protest rally.
The aim of the demonstration was to highlight the ruling dispensation’s failure to arrest the rising inflation on the first day of the state assembly session.
