Karnataka Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) President and MLA B.Y. Vijayendra on Wednesday, 17 June launched a multi-pronged attack on the state's Congress government, accusing it of taking a contradictory position on the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls and of inciting government officials to protest against constitutional bodies. Speaking to reporters in Bengaluru, Vijayendra also renewed allegations over Congress leader Rahul Gandhi's citizenship status, demanding a public clarification.

BJP's Charge on Electoral Roll Revision

Vijayendra argued that the SIR — an exercise conducted by the Election Commission of India (ECI) — was being needlessly politicised by the ruling party. He said the revision was designed to weed out illegal immigrants, duplicate voter entries, and names of deceased individuals still listed on rolls.

'The Congress government is playing a dual role on the SIR issue. Officers are being provoked to stage protests by the government. The Election Commission's exercise is intended to identify illegal immigrants, duplicate entries and deceased persons whose names continue to remain on electoral rolls,' Vijayendra said.

He described the alleged instigation of government employees against constitutional authorities as an 'unpardonable offence,' accusing the administration of deliberately engineering conflict between citizens, officials, and independent institutions.

Citizenship Question Directed at Rahul Gandhi

Vijayendra renewed BJP's long-standing allegations regarding Rahul Gandhi's citizenship, pressing Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar and Home Minister Priyank Kharge to demand clarity from their own leadership.

'I want to ask the Chief Minister Shivakumar and Home Minister Priyank Kharge... Rahul Gandhi should publicly clarify the allegations regarding dual citizenship. The Congress party must throw light on this issue,' he said. The BJP has raised similar questions in the past, though no formal legal finding on the matter has been established.

Targeting Priyank Kharge Over RSS Remarks

Vijayendra also took aim at Home Minister Priyank Kharge over his recent comments on the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), suggesting the minister was overstepping his jurisdiction and chasing political controversies at the expense of pressing state matters.

'Priyank Kharge appears to believe that he is the Home Minister of the country rather than the state. The questions he has raised about the RSS are not new. There are more important issues that require attention,' Vijayendra said. He urged the government to instead focus on alleged illegal immigration from Bangladesh, cases of so-called 'love jihad,' and what he described as attacks on Hindu activists.

Financial Mismanagement Allegations

The BJP leader widened his offensive to cover the Congress government's fiscal record, alleging it had failed to mobilise adequate funds and was quietly rolling back development work. He claimed that over three years, the government had not delivered on housing promises made to the poor and farmers.

Vijayendra cited remarks reportedly made by leaders associated with the Guarantee Implementation Committee, suggesting that women who pay income tax may be excluded from the Gruha Lakshmi scheme. He claimed that removing roughly 1.5 lakh such beneficiaries could save the government close to ₹60 crore — and argued this pointed to a deliberate strategy to scale back flagship welfare guarantees.

Questions Over Guarantee Committees

Vijayendra also questioned the utility of the Guarantee Implementation Committees, which he noted had been granted official recognition, dedicated offices, and cabinet-rank positions funded by the state exchequer. He asked why these bodies had not flagged irregularities in scheme implementation if problems existed.

'The government has appointed committee presidents at the district level and formed committees in every Assembly constituency. If there were irregularities in the implementation of the schemes, what were these committees doing all this time?' he asked. He alleged the government was now attempting to shift blame for its own fiscal failures onto beneficiaries and implementation gaps. All allegations by Vijayendra represent the BJP's stated position; the Congress government's response was not immediately available.