Lost 1991 Lok Sabha elections due to fraud, says CM Siddaramaiah; BJP takes at dig at him

BENGALURU: Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said that he had lost the 1991 Lok Sabha elections due to “cheating” and that senior advocate Ravivarma Kumar had filed a case without taking any legal fees from him.

Siddaramaiah felicitated former Advocate General Ravivarma Kumar on Thursday, and recalled, “In 1991, when I contested Lok Sabha elections, I lost it because of cheating (fraud) we can say. At that time, Ravivarma Kumar only filed the case as my advocate by drafting it without taking any fees and he fought it for me”.

His remarks came amid the row over alleged “vote theft”. Reacting to this, the state BJP commented, “CM @siddaramaiah, you yourself have admitted in a packed meeting that Basavaraj Patil Anwari, who contested from Congress, defeated you, who contested from Janata Dal in the 1991 Koppal Lok Sabha election, through “vote theft”. Now, with what face are you participating in the #VoteAdhikarYatra being led by #LoserRahul Gandhi in Bihar..??”

ಸಿಎಂ @siddaramaiah ಅವರೆ, 1991 ರ ಕೊಪ್ಪಳ ಲೋಕಸಭಾ ಚುನಾವಣೆಯಲ್ಲಿ ಜನತಾದಳದಿಂದ ಸ್ಪರ್ಧಿಸಿದ್ದ ನಿಮ್ಮನ್ನು ಕಾಂಗ್ರೆಸ್ಸಿನಿಂದ ಸ್ಪರ್ಧಿಸಿದ್ದ ಬಸವರಾಜ ಪಾಟೀಲ್ ಅನ್ವರಿ ಅವರು ಸೋಲಿಸಿದ್ದು “ವೋಟ್‌ ಚೋರಿ” ಮೂಲಕ ಎಂಬುದನ್ನು ನೀವೇ ತುಂಬಿದ ಸಭೆಯಲ್ಲಿ ಒಪ್ಪಿಕೊಂಡಿದ್ದೀರಿ.

ಈಗ ಅದ್ಯಾವ ಮುಖ ಇಟ್ಟುಕೊಂಡು ಬಿಹಾರದಲ್ಲಿ #LoserRahul ಗಾಂಧಿ… pic.twitter.com/1kZtXcErTD

— BJP Karnataka (@BJP4Karnataka) August 29, 2025

At the event, he said that Ravivarma Kumar has provided legal assistance to many like him. In particular, Ravivarma Kumar Associates provides assistance to the voiceless in society without charging a fee. His socialist attitude is a role model for today’s young lawyers, the CM said. “Farmers’ leader Professor Nanjundaswamy and many youths, including Ravivarma Kumar, joined the Samajwadi Jana Sabha during college days. We have been socialists ever since”, Siddaramaiah recalled.

The Chief Minister remembered his journey as a lawyer and said that he had worked as a junior lawyer with Chikkaboraiah for 10 years. After becoming an MLA, he stopped practising law. However, Ravivarma Kumar continued his career as a lawyer while in the Samajwadi Party. He has completed 50 years of his legal career and hopes it will continue for many more years.

High Court Justice Anu Sivaraman, S P Narendraprasad, Advocate General Shashikiran Shetty, Chief Minister’s Legal Adviser A S Ponnanna, Bar Association president Vivek Subbareddy, senior advocate Uday Holla, and former Home Minister H M Revana were also present at the ceremony.

The event was organised by the Bengaluru Advocates Association and Ravivarma Kumar Associates at the Banquet Hall of Vidhana Soudha.

Sharing an X post, the Chief Minister’s handle said, “At a programme organised by the Bengaluru Advocates Association and Ravi Varma Kumar Associates at the Banquet Hall of Vidhana Soudha, Chief Minister @siddaramaiah honoured and felicitated senior advocate Prof Ravi Varma Kumar”. (ANI)