Ex-CM Siddaramaiah Among Karnataka Congress Leaders Detained During Protest Against Bidar Sedition Case

Bengaluru: Several Karnataka Congress leaders, including its president Dinesh Gundu Rao and leader of opposition Siddaramaiah, were detained by the police on Saturday as they marched to Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa’s office to protest against the alleged misuse of the police department by the BJP government in the state.

Rao and Bangalore rural MP DK Suresh tried to jump the barricade set up by the police to stop them, and march towards Yediyurappa's residence, but were stopped midway and detained.

The march, which began from the Gandhi statue on Race Course Road, led to a traffic pile-up.

The state Congress had organised the protest over the case of sedition filed against a Bidar school and the arrest of a parent and the headmistress (now on bail) for their alleged involvement in staging a drama portraying Prime Minister Narendra Modi in poor light in connection with the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and the National Register of Citizens (NRC).

The principal opposition party in the state alleged misuse of the police department by the state government to book cases against those opposing the BJP and its "divisive policies".

As he was being detained, Siddaramaiah termed the police action as undemocratic. "They have no right to suppress or take away our rights," he said.

The Congress had planned to lay siege to Yediyurappa's office, claiming that the law was being violated across the state and false cases of sedition were being filed against political opponents, especially those from the Congress and those opposing the CAA and NRC, Siddaramaiah said.

Despite BJP activists using "filthy language and making anti-national comments", no cases were filed against them, he added.

Siddaramaiah alleged that the BJP was trying to suppress the Congress using the police, pointing out that cases have been booked against its leader UT Khader and a student from Mysuru for opposing the CAA and the NRC, while no such cases have been filed against ruling party leaders like Somashekara Reddy and Anant Kumar Hegde for allegedly making inflammatory speeches.