K'taka min resigns after remarks on 'vote theft'

Karnataka cooperation minister KN Rajanna, a confidant of chief minister Siddaramaiah, resigned on Monday after his statement on allegations of “vote theft” by leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi seemed to contradict the party’s stance.

- Arun Dev

Addressing reporters in Tumkuru on Sunday, Rajanna said, “If we just start talking about such things casually, there will be different opinions. When was the voter list prepared? It was prepared when our own government was in power. At that time, was everyone just sitting quietly with eyes closed?”

To be sure, he reiterated Gandhi’s allegations. “These irregularities did take place. That's the truth. There is nothing false in this. These irregularities happened right in front of our eyes. We should feel ashamed. We didn’t take care of it at the time. That's why we must be alert in the future.”