Fact Check: Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah announces self-defence training only for Muslim girls? Find the truth here
After Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah presented the State budget on March 7, a post claiming that self-defence classes only for girls from the Muslim community will be funded has gone viral.
By K Sherly Sharon Published on 17 March 2025 9:58 AM IST
Claim: Karnataka CM announces self-defence training only for Muslim girls in the State budget.
Fact: The claim is false. The self-defence training announced is for girls from various minority communities, not just Muslim girls.
Hyderabad: Karnataka State budget for the fiscal year 2025-2026 was presented by chief minister Siddaramaiah on March 7.
After the budget plan was announced, a post claiming that the Karnataka government is organising self-defence classes only for girls from Muslim communities is going viral on social media.
The text on an image uploaded to the page āIndia Against Anti-Nationalsā on Facebook claims, āHindu girl Swati brutally mu*rdered in Karnatakaā¦ One culprit Nayaz arrested by policeā¦ Irony is, in his budget, Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah has announced to give self-defence training only to girls from the Muslim community!!ā The image was shared on March 14. (Archive)
Fact Check
NewsMeter found that the claim is false. The self-defence training program announced by the Karnataka CM will be provided to girls from various minority communities and is not limited to the Muslim community.
The post mentioned the death of a Hindu girl, Swati. According to an India Today report, 22-year-old Swati was found dead in the Tungabhadra River in Karnatakaās Haveri district on March 6, 2025.
The report stated that police arrested Nayaz, aged 28, from Hirekerur town in the district on March 13. Nayaz confessed to the crime and revealed that he had been assisted by Durga Chari Badiger and Vinayak Pujar.
Further, we searched for Siddaramaiahās announcement on self-defence classes for girls.
Using keyword searches, we have found a March 8, 2025, report by The New Indian Express with the headline āTrain āem young: Self-defence for 25k girls in 169 educational institutes in Karnataka.ā The report stated that the self-defence training program will be overseen by the Directorate of Minorities.
āSelf-defence skill training will be given to 25,000 girl students studying in 169 residential schools and colleges run by the Directorate of Minorities, announced Chief Minister Siddaramaiah in the budget,ā stated the report.
An Economic Times report from March 7, 2025, also outlines that the self-defence program will be provided to girl students studying in 169 residential schools and colleges run by the Directorate of Minorities.
The same information was also mentioned in the document about the Karnataka State budget for 2025-2026. Point 221 under the Minorities Welfare section stated, āSelf-defence skills training will be provided to 25,000 girls students studying in 169 residential schools/ colleges run by Directorate of Minorities.ā
According to the website of the Directorate of Minorities, in the State of Karnataka, communities such as Muslims, Christians, Jains, Buddhists, Sikhs and Parsis come under the purview of Minorities.
āThe Directorate of Minorities was carved out of the Directorate of Backward Classes and created in the year 1999-2000 to ensure a more focused approach towards issues relating to the notified Minority communities, namely Muslims, Christians, Jains, Buddhist, Sikhs and Parsis,ā stated the website.
From this, we understand that the self-defence skill training announced by CM Siddaramaiah during the Karnataka budget is intended for girls from various minority communities, not just Muslims.
Therefore, NewsMeter concludes that the viral claim is false.
