Modi Turns 76: Karnataka Minister Ajay Singh Questions PM Over 75-Year Retirement Norm

Raichur, Sept 17: Karnataka Minister Ajay Dharam Singh on Thursday questioned why Prime Minister Narendra Modi had not retired from politics after turning 76, referring to the Bharatiya Janata Party’s earlier practice of senior leaders stepping aside after attaining the age of 75.

“Modi has turned 76 today. He himself had announced that leaders should retire at 75. L K Advani and Murli Manohar Joshi were retired after reaching that age. Why has Narendra Modi not retired?” Singh asked while speaking to reporters on the sidelines of the Kalyana Karnataka Utsav celebrations here.

The Minister also questioned the Centre’s contribution to the development of Kalyana Karnataka. He said the Karnataka government had allocated Rs 5,000 crore for the region from its Rs 4.48 lakh crore budget.

“The Centre has a budget of Rs 52 lakh crore. Why should it not provide Rs 5,000 crore to Kalyana Karnataka?” he asked, adding that a similar allocation from the Centre would take the total investment in the region to Rs 10,000 crore.

On the BJP’s demand for the resignation of Minister Priyank Kharge over alleged irregularities in KPSC recruitment, Singh said the BJP had failed to produce documents to substantiate its allegations.

“The BJP has been making statements for more than a month, but there are no documents. Earlier, Kumaraswamy also said he had a CD and a pen drive, but neither the CD nor the pen drive was released,” he said.

On reports of transaction charges being levied on UPI payments above Rs 2,000, Singh said the government was collecting complete information on the issue.

He also referred to Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s earlier political jibe at Paytm, saying, “Rahul Gandhi had said 10 years ago that PAYTM means Direct Pay to Modi.”

Earlier, Singh hoisted the national flag at the Kalyana Karnataka Utsav organised by the district administration, Zilla Panchayat and Raichur Mahanagara Palike at Mahatma Gandhi District Stadium.

The annual observance is held on September 17 across the seven Kalyana Karnataka districts to commemorate the region’s integration with the Indian Union.