K’taka CM holding DCs accountable for question paper leaks henceforth ‘political hypocrisy’: BJP

BJP leader R Ashoka accused Karnataka's Congress government of political hypocrisy over accountability for question paper leaks. He criticised Chief Minister D K Shivakumar's decision to hold district officials responsible, alleging the government was shifting blame instead of fixing recruitment system failures

Bengaluru:  Accusing the Congress government in Karnataka of “political hypocrisy”, senior BJP leader R Ashoka on Sunday questioned its national leadership as to why accountability travels downward when their party is in power.

Reacting to Chief Minister D K Shivakumar’s statement that Deputy Commissioners (DCs) of the districts will be held accountable for question paper leak henceforth, the Leader of Opposition in Karnataka Assembly, called it a Congress model to protect the political class and pass the blame down the chain.

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“Rahul Gandhi. Priyanka Gandhi. D K Shivakumar. Three faces. One hypocrisy. In Delhi, the Congress ecosystem demands resignations and lectures the nation on accountability. In Karnataka, the same Congress government has exposed its real mindset,” Ashoka posted on ‘X’.

Alleging that Shivakumar is not talking about preventing future question paper leaks, making recruitment systems tamper-proof, and protecting the aspirations of students, he said, “Instead, his first instinct is to announce that Deputy Commissioners will be held accountable, a ready-made scapegoat for every future failure.” “This is the Congress model: Protect the political class. Pass the blame down the chain,” he added.

Shivakumar on Saturday warned Deputy Commissioners of the districts that they would be held responsible for any question paper leak in the state’s recruitment examinations.

The direction came in the wake of NEET paper leak controversy that triggered nationwide protests and culminated in the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan.

Stating that Congress top leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi must answer one simple question, Ashoka asked, “Why does accountability travel upward only when the BJP governs, but downward when the Congress governs.” “One country. Two standards. Moral lectures for Delhi. Bureaucratic scapegoats for Karnataka. That is not accountability. That is political hypocrisy at its worst,” he added.