New Delhi: Congress MP DK Suresh triggered a row on Thursday after he said that the southern states were facing injustice in the Union Budget and if it continued, they would be forced to demand a separate country. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Thursday presented the Interim Budget in the Lok Sabha.
Reacting to the Interim Budget, Congress MP from Bengaluru DK Suresh told reporters, "This is the election budget. In the interim budget, only names have been changed. They have introduced some Sanskrit names and Hindi names of schemes. The Centre is not properly giving the right share of GST and direct taxes to South Indian states."
"The South Indian states are facing injustice. The money collected from southern states is being given to North Indian states. If this continues, we will be forced to demand a separate country. The centre is getting over Rs 4 lakh crore from us and what we are getting in return is negligible," the senior Congress leader said.
"We have to question this. If this is not rectified, all southern states will have to raise their voices demanding a separate nation," he added. On Congress MP DK Suresh's statement, former Union Finance Minister P Chidambaram said, "It is not the policy of the Congress Party or the position of the Congress Party to ask for a separate country. For the rest, you have to ask Mr Suresh."
Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister and senior Congress leader DK Shivakumar said, "DK Suresh or any other leader have spoken of the pain of South India." "There has to be a balance. The entire country is one. You cannot only look at the Hindi belt. In this budget, there is no equal distribution of finances. Karnataka has been giving a lot of revenue to the Centre. For the entire South India, no major announcement has been made. We feel like we have been let down. But the entire country is one. We are Indians. India should be united. There is no question of demanding anything region-wise," added DK Shivkumar.
Meanwhile, Karnataka Minister Sharanprakash Patil backed Suresh. "It is a fact that because as per the 15th Finance Commission, Karnataka tax collection is more than Rs. 4 lakhs crore. But Karnataka got very little. It is less than Rs. 50,000 crores. Whatever was said and done, they could have compensated Karnataka. They are punishing the states which are doing well," Patil was quoted as saying by news agency ANI.
Karnataka Minister HK Patil alleged that the Centre has given a deaf ear to South Indian states. "The pain that he (Congress MP DK Suresh) is getting is because the Government of India has totally given deaf ears to the South Indian states... Karnataka is under drought... and not even a single penny is released for Karnataka. This type of thing will not enhance the credibility of the government," HK Patil told reporters.
Meanwhile, BJP MP Tejasvi Surya slammed the Congress over DK Suresh's statement. "Dividing the country, based on religion, language and regionalities is nothing new for the Congress party. An MP from Congress in Karnataka has aspired for a separate southern India, which is again not a new argument," Surya, who represents Bengaluru South in the Lok Sabha, was quoted as saying by news agency ANI.
"Most of the Congress party's allies, including the DMK, have been speaking this separatist line for a long time. He says that the devolution of funds from the Centre to southern states, especially Karnataka, is partial. Karnataka is being discriminated and on this ground, he has made an argument for a separate nation. His comments reek of a (Muhammad Ali) Jinnah-style separatism. While this separatist tone is to be condemned, his statement is also bereft of logic and facts," added Tejasvi Surya.
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