Koppal, 25 March

Kannada and Culture Minister Shivaraj Tangadagi on Monday said youths who praise Prime Minister should be "slapped" as Bharatiya Janata Party government has failed to provide 20 crore jobs in 10 years, adding that the "BJP thinks that they can fool the public for another term".

Speaking at a meeting of Congress workers held in Karatagy, Shivaraj alleged that PM Modi came to power by "lying". "Two crore jobs PM Modi promised. Did he give it? They should be ashamed. Those youth supporters of his who chant 'Modi Modi', can slap them. They have run everything based on lies for the past 10 years," he said.

Further, he asserted that he will provide 2 crore jobs to the youth every year. "So they think they can fool for another 5 years. PM Modi promised 100 smart cities in India. Where are they? Name one. He is smart, he dresses well, he gives smart speeches. He keeps changing his outfits. Then a stunt by the PM-he goes into the depths of the ocean and there he does puja. Is this the kind of work a prime minister should do?" Shivaraj said.

"They cheated Sanganna. MP Sanganna praised PM Modi. They kept him at home without giving him a ticket, and now the Congress candidate Rajanna will win because the BJP has denied a ticket to Sanganna," he added.

The 28 Lok Sabha seats in Karnataka will poll in two phases — on 26  April and 7 May. In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the Congress and JDS fought together against the BJP but were still decimated. The BJP had won a record 25 seats while the Congress and the JDS won just a single seat each. The Lok Sabha Elections 2024 will be held in seven phases, starting 19 April. The counting of votes has been scheduled for 4 June.