Chief Minister Siddaramaiah speaks at the Legislative Council in Bengaluru. | Photo credit: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Thursday defended his use of air transport and countered opposition criticism by citing expenditure incurred by previous governments and questioning the Centre’s expenditure.
Responding during the Budget debate in the Legislative Council, Mr. Siddaramaiah said that air transport is essential for the effective management of official engagements. “As chief minister, I have to attend several programmes. To save time, I have to travel by air,” he said.
He sought to draw a comparison with former Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai’s tenure and said he had spent about ₹37 crore on aviation in 2021-22. “Why didn’t you ask?” he asked opposition members.
Selective criticism
Giving details of his tenure, Mr. Siddaramaiah said the air transport expenditure was around ₹12 crore in 2023-24, ₹21 crore in 2024-25 and ₹29 crore in 2025-26. “Which is higher – ₹37 crore or ₹29 crore?” he asked, claiming the criticism was selective.
Referring to the expenditure on Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s foreign visits, he claimed that more than ₹814 crore was spent and questioned whether it was “wasteful”.
Leader of Opposition Chalavadi Narayanaswamy objected to the comparison and said the Chief Minister should not be citing the Centre’s expenditure. He argued that the opposition was questioning the use of relatively short-haul air travel.
In reply, Mr. Siddaramaiah said that travel decisions are governed by administrative necessity. “Even at a distance of 40 to 60 km, we can use air transport if necessary,” he said, reiterating that similar practices were followed without objection by previous governments.
Published – 26 March 2026 20:54 IST
