Updated On: 15 Sep 2026
BENGALURU: Democracy is not merely about elections and voting but about ensuring dignity, respect and the right to live, Chief Minister D K Shivakumar said on Tuesday, urging youth to become leaders and create new leadership.
Inaugurating the International Day of Democracy programme at Vidhana Soudha’s Banquet Hall, Shivakumar said leaders faced obstacles at every step and recalled his journey from school elections to becoming Chief Minister.
“I faced many hurdles from Class VII until I became an MLA and am now sitting in the Chief Minister’s chair. Young people must come forward to become leaders. A true leader is one who creates other leaders,” he said.
Youth Parliament, college elections
Shivakumar announced model Parliaments in schools and colleges to create a Youth Parliament movement based on the ideas of Basavanna’s Anubhava Mantapa, which he described as the world’s first Parliament.
He declared that disciplined elections should be held in every college, saying every student must get an opportunity to demonstrate leadership.
“We do not know where the spark lies in each person. Everyone must get an opportunity to lead,” he said.
Recalling his political journey, Shivakumar said he was denied a fair opportunity in school and college elections and was also denied a student Congress ticket. While pursuing his degree, he contested against former Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda but lost. He later won an Assembly election.
He recalled that while studying at National Public School, he was not allowed to continue in the next classes for being mischievous. At Carmel School, he contested a Class VII election with the star as his symbol. Though he secured around 80 votes, classmate Arathi, who received 20 per cent of the votes, was made school secretary. A sports secretary post was created for him instead.
He also recalled being denied an opportunity to contest the Vidyavardhaka College election, after which he helped Deshpande contest and win by delivering speeches for him.
Democracy is India’s soul
“Democracy is India’s soul. The people are the rulers here,” Shivakumar said, highlighting Anubhava Mantapa’s democratic tradition.
He recalled visiting Anubhava Mantapa within three days of becoming Chief Minister and said it represented opportunities without caste or gender discrimination.
“Democracy is not limited to voting. Elections and selection of leaders from panchayats to Parliament alone do not constitute democracy. Providing dignity, respect and the right to live is true democracy,” he said.
He added that democracy prevailed when governments respected people, while fear of the government amounted to authoritarianism.
Congress legacy, voting rights
Shivakumar said the Congress had fought the British, brought freedom and democracy to India, and contributed the Constitution, national flag and national anthem.
“Only those committed to democracy can speak fearlessly,” he said, citing Dr B R Ambedkar’s warning that those who forget history cannot create history.
He said Rahul Gandhi had stressed the need for legal teams in every taluk and announced plans to establish a party legal bank.
Claiming that the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) could leave one crore people without voting rights, he said arrangements were being made to provide permanent residence and income certificates to 47 lakh people for inclusion in electoral rolls.
“Nobody should lose the right to vote,” he said.
Guarantees and reservation
Shivakumar said the Congress government came to power in 2023 with 136 Assembly seats despite a double-engine government. He said the five guarantees were introduced after understanding people’s difficulties during Bharat Jodo and provide social and economic strength.
The government spends ₹52,000 crore annually on the guarantees, he said, attributing them to the party’s ideological commitment.
He questioned why the Union government had not implemented the SCSP-TSP scheme introduced by former Chief Minister Siddaramaiah.
Claiming Congress had protected reservation, he stressed equal opportunities and humanity, saying Dr Ambedkar had emphasised the right to vote as India’s greatest power.
He announced a sixth guarantee relating to land and said 10–15 lakh residential plots would be distributed to poor families. He claimed BJP and JD(S) had not introduced similar land-to-the-tiller programmes.
Youth organisations
Shivakumar credited Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge with implementing Article 371J and bringing changes to Kalyana Karnataka.
He said 10,000 Bharat Jodo youth associations were being established to promote culture, sports and arts.
“This government will stand with you,” he said.
During the programme, Shivakumar paid floral tributes to Dr B R Ambedkar and Babu Jagjivan Ram, read the Constitution’s Preamble with the gathering and unveiled the Youth Parliament logo.
Deputy Chief Minister Dr G Parameshwara, ministers K H Muniyappa, Shivaraj Tangadagi and Rizwan Arshad, H C Mahadevappa, P T Parameshwar Naik, MLC D T Srinivas, Mehroos Khan, G S Manjunath, G Pallavi, M Ramappa, Vivek Subbareddy and others were present.
