Siddaramaiah seeks judicial probe into Bengaluru violence

PTI, Aug 20, 2020, 9:59 AM IST

Bengaluru: Former Karnataka chief minister Siddaramaiah on Wednesday, August 19 alleged the BJP government in Karnataka was only interested in gaining mileage using the recent mob violence here and no relief measures had been taken up in the flood-hit areas.

He also sought a judicial inquiry into the violence that broke out over a social media post by the nephew of a Congress MLA, claiming it showed intelligence ”failure”.

In a series of tweets, Siddaramaiah, who is also the Congress Legislature Party leader, asked Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa to direct his ministers to visit the affected places to carry out relief works.

“The whole state is suffering due to floods & its mismanagement. But @BJP4Karnataka is only interested in gaining political mileage using Bengaluru violence,” he charged.

He also claimed ”failure” to provide relief and rehabilitation for last year’s flood victims has added to the misery.

Taking a dig at Home Minister Basavaraj Bommai and Revenue Minister R Ashoka, he tweeted the Home Minister was surveying flood-affected areas while the latter continued to ”speculate” on Bengaluru violence, that left four people dead last week.

“Is it not the duty of the Revenue minister to assess the damage due to floods?” he asked and urged Yediyurappa to “direct your ministers to carry out their work.”

On the situation in his assembly constituency Badami, he said people there were under stress due to floods.  Later in a letter to Yediyurappa, he demanded a judicial inquiry into the violence at the Devara Jeevanahalli and Kadugondanahalli, claiming it was an outcome of the “failure” of the government and the Intelligence department.

If the government cannot protect an MLA and the police station then how can it be able to protect the people of the state?” Siddaramaiah asked.

Reacting to it, Bommai said Siddaramaiah was agitated with the ”squabbling” in Congress. “His condition in Congress is very critical. Hence, he speaks only about the BJP all the time,” he claimed.

The violence in DJ Halli and adjoining areas on August 11 night was unleashed by hundreds of people over an inflammatory social media post allegedly put out by P Naveen, a relative of Pulakeshinagar Congress MLA R Akhanda Srinivasa Murthy.