Bengaluru: In a sudden development on the first day of the Monsoon Session of the State Legislature, Co-operation Minister K.N. Rajanna was sacked from the Cabinet yesterday, in what is seen as a fallout of his criticism of Opposition Leader Rahul Gandhi’s ‘vote theft’ charge against the Election Commission (EC).

Chief Minister Siddaramaiah is said to have received a diktat from the Congress High Command yesterday morning to sack his close aide Rajanna, who had publicly ridiculed Rahul Gandhi’s allegations on ‘vote theft.’

The sacking was not without a touch of drama as Rajanna, a staunch supporter of Siddaramaiah, in a bid to pre-empt his sacking, offered to resign and went to the Chief Minister’s Office (CMO).

However, acting on the party’s instructions, the CM sent a recommendation to Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot, who subsequently signed off a notification for Rajanna’s removal from the Ministry on yesterday afternoon.

This is seen as a setback to Siddaramaiah as it comes during the Monsoon Session, which commenced earlier in the day.

According to sources in the Congress, Siddaramaiah tried hard to delay Rajanna’s sacking until the Legislature Session concluded. However, the Congress top brass was adamant.

While Siddaramaiah and Rajanna declined to react, Deputy Chief Minister (Dy.CM) D.K. Shivakumar, who is also the KPCC President, said that the sacking was the party’s decision.

Rajanna was said to be already in the party’s bad books, after he publicly claimed in March that honey-trapping attempts were made on him and other politicians, which was seen as an embarrassment to the Government.

Last Friday, Rahul Gandhi addressed a protest rally in Bengaluru, where he doubled down on his charge that the EC ‘colluded’ with the BJP to allow more than 1 lakh ‘bogus votes’ in Bengaluru’s Mahadevapura Assembly segment, which helped the saffron party win the Bengaluru Central Lok Sabha seat under which Mahadevapura Constituency comes.

On Saturday, Rajanna, who represents Madhugiri Assembly constituency in Tumakuru district, ended up criticising his own party when he was asked if ‘vote theft’ helped the BJP win the Tumakuru Lok Sabha seat in the  2024 polls.

“When were the voter lists prepared? They were prepared under our Congress Government. Were we all sleeping?” Rajanna had asked on Saturday while speaking to press persons.

Only last week, Rajanna was relieved as Hassan District in-Charge Minister, after he had sought relievement due to other commitments in his home district of Tumakuru.

Rajanna is the second Minister to exit the Siddaramaiah Cabinet after Ballari Rural MLA B. Nagendra had to resign in connection with alleged Valmiki Development Corporation scam last year. Both Nagendra and Rajanna belong to Valmiki (ST) community.

With Rajanna’s exit, the State Cabinet now has only one ST Minister in Satish Jarkiholi, who is the PWD Minister.