Davangere/Bengaluru: Prime Minister Narendra Modi tore into state chief minister Siddaramaraiah on Wednesday at a rally in Davangere, playing on the chief minister’s name to tar the Siddaramaiah government as “Seedha Rupaiya Sarkar” that works only for money, as the BJP and Congress unleashed a war of words over corruption in pollbound  Karnataka.

Congress’ communications chief Randeep Singh Surjewala used Mr Modi’s remark made in 2012, when he had attacked prime minister Manmohan Singh, saying he was “maun (silent) Mohan Singh” who showed no concern over rising prices and plight of the poor people, to target PM Modi himself over his silence on the PNB scam, asking him to turn from “maun (silent) Modi to bol (speaking) Modi”.

“Who is responsible? Who is responsible for this public loot of money? We, with folded hands, request Prime Minister Narendra Modi... when will you honorable prime minister shift from maun Modi to bol Modi (silent Modi to speaking Modi),” Mr Surjewala said.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi however said: “Some people feel that in Karnataka there is Siddaramaiah government. But the fact is that here there is seedha rupaiya sarkar (to rhyme with the chief minister’s name. In everything there is seeda rupaiya (bribe and tainted money), only then work happens.

“You tell me, do you want this seedha rupaiya culture? This seeda Rupaiya government has to go,” Mr Modi said.