Bengaluru: Karnataka Assembly Opposition leader R Ashoka on Tuesday congratulated Chief Minister D K Shivakumar on assuming office but launched a sharp attack on the Congress, questioning whether a change in leadership would lead to any change in governance.
In a post on social media, Ashoka said the people of Karnataka were expecting more than just a change of chief minister and wanted a shift in the government’s priorities and functioning.
“Congratulations to D K Shivakumar. I wish him success in working for the state’s development and people’s welfare. However, a mere change of chief minister does not automatically bring change to governance,” he said.
The BJP leader alleged that the Congress government’s three-year tenure was marked by corruption, transfer rackets, commission culture and administrative failures, which had adversely affected the state.
Claiming that several key figures from the previous administration continue to hold influential positions, Ashoka said many people viewed the new government as “a new face of the same old system”.
He argued that meaningful change would require decisive action against corruption, misuse of power and what he termed anti-people policies.
“The people of Karnataka are now looking for results, not promises; action, not rhetoric; governance, not publicity,” he said.
Ashoka further remarked that the new chief minister was inheriting not a “mountain of opportunities” but the accumulated challenges and shortcomings of the Congress government’s past three years.
He added that while leadership may have changed, voters had not forgotten their experience under the previous administration and would judge the new government by its performance.
