Mysuru, 14 May

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Tuesday denied any internal rift within the ruling Congress in the State, and asserted that the party was united.

"Where is the rift within us? Is there a fight among us? They (BJP) saying it is different, they say it for politics....where is the internal rift?" Siddaramaiah asked reporters, responding to a question on State BJP leaders' statements that Congress government will fall because of its internal rifts.

He said, "There is no internal rift among us. If there was internal rift, could we have done (faced) Parliament elections unitedly? There is no rift, neither inside, nor outside."

Reacting to Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde's reported statements regarding efforts to replicate the 'Maharashtra model' to topple the Congress government in Karnataka, the CM said, "They (BJP leaders) have been making such claims for a year now."

"He (Shinde) is Maharashtra Chief Minister, instead of speaking about our government, let him save his government first," he added.

BJP President BY Vijayendra on Monday said his party will not make any attempt to pull down this government, but he cannot now itself predict the kind of unrest that will get created within the ruling Congress, after the Lok Sabha poll results are declared.

Asked whether the pen-drive case (sex scandal involving JD(S) MP Prajwal Revanna) will have its impact on MLC polls, particularly in the old Mysuru region, he said, "Pen-drive case has nothing to do with the polls, as voters here are graduates and teachers. They are politically aware voters, they have the strength to decide who is right and who is not, they do the comparison of Congress governments achievement here and BJP at the Centre." PTI