Guarantee schemes to stay, says Siddaramaiah, highlights issues with Centre

Amid pressure from within the ruling Congress to do a "rethink" on the ambitious five guarantees schemes, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Thursday asserted that it will continue and highlighted the "Karnataka model" of development with focus on social justice and economic equality, thereby contributing to nation-building. Accusing the Centre of 'deviating' from the principle of the federal system in recent years, leading to discrimination in the allocation of funds to states, he urged it to understand the fact that the nation can develop only if states are developed and release a fair amount of grants for their development. In a democratic system, the opposition parties are expected to function responsibly in tandem with the principles of the Constitution, by respecting the mandate given by the people of the state, the Chief Minister noted. The electorate with their political acumen has made it clear in the last Lok Sabha elections that "democracy cannot be a puppet in anyone's ...