Union Minister Pralhad Joshi on 4 November 2026 launched a sharp attack on the Congress government in Karnataka, alleging that it was recovering ten times the cost of its welfare guarantees from ordinary citizens through successive price hikes on milk, dairy products, and public transport fares. Joshi accused the state administration of pushing what he described as a once-prosperous state toward fiscal decline under the cover of populist promises.

Transport Corporations in Distress

The Union Minister alleged that all four state transport corporations — including the Karnataka Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) and the Bengaluru Metropolitan Transport Corporation (BMTC) — had been driven into severe financial distress under the current dispensation. He claimed the corporations were struggling to arrange funds even for diesel procurement, with thousands of crores in pending payments under guarantee schemes left uncleared by the state government.

Joshi noted that these transport bodies, which were reportedly functioning profitably before the Congress came to power, had slipped into losses over what he described as three-and-a-half years of misgovernance.

Milk, Dairy, and Bus Fare Hikes Draw Fire

The minister pointed to a sequence of price increases that he said directly contradicted the government's guarantee narrative. Within days of raising the prices of Nandini milk, curd, and ghee, the Karnataka government imposed a bus fare hike of 23 to 35 per cent, Joshi alleged. He said the increases were placing a disproportionate burden on students, daily-wage workers, and low-income salaried employees.

Separately, V. Sunil Kumar, former minister and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLA, described the fare revision as evidence that the government was, in his words, 'not a guarantee government but a government of robbery.' He also criticised Chief Minister Siddaramaiah's reported response that bus fares would be reduced only if the Centre cut fuel prices, calling it an attempt to deflect accountability.

BJP's Broader Political Attack

Sunil Kumar questioned whether the Congress government's sole governance achievement since assuming office had been to burden citizens with higher prices for milk and public transport — the very essentials its guarantee campaign had promised to ease. He argued that the blame-shifting to the Centre was not governance but an abdication of responsibility.

Joshi, likewise, questioned the logic of a guarantee regime that simultaneously raised costs across the board, calling it fiscal sleight of hand that left citizens worse off than before the promises were made.

Context and What to Watch

The Congress swept to power in Karnataka in 2023 on the back of five flagship guarantee schemes — including free bus travel for women — which were widely credited with driving its electoral majority. Critics, including the BJP, have since argued that the fiscal cost of these schemes has strained state finances, a charge the Congress government contests.

The latest price hike row comes amid broader questions about state fiscal health and sets the stage for intensified political confrontation ahead of local body elections. How the Karnataka government responds — particularly on whether it will roll back or justify the fare revision — will likely define the next phase of this debate.