Stating that people of Udupi district respect the uniform (Khaki) and the law, Udupi MLA Yashpal Suvarna cautioned the government against using the police machinery to harass the innocent people of the district, who may show their might in Bengaluru.
He was addressing a meeting that followed a padayatra protesting against the alleged step-motherly treatment to Udupi district by the Congress government in Karnataka. The padayatra was organised by the Udupi city unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on March 31, in Udupi.
“Mr. Siddaramaiah did not earmark any funds for Udupi district only because all the five MLAs are from the BJP,” he alleged.
Citing the example of a police sub-inspector of Manipal threatening to book a BJP worker in an NDPS case for questioning the police assault on the party cadre, Mr. Suvarna said ‘khaki rowdism’ will not be tolerated in the district. “The bureaucracy should not take people’s patience and allegiance to law for granted to unleash terror among them,” he said.
Unfair treatment
Belthangady MLA Harish Poonja said Udupi district ranks second in payment of taxes to the exchequer. However, the Siddaramaiah government did not offer any pro-people schemes in the recent budget.
Legislators from the coast had met the Chief Minister prior to the budget urging him to provide sufficient funds for various developmental works. However, not a single rupee was earmarked for developmental works in Udupi district, Mr. Poonja claimed.
Not a single house built for the poor
Udupi-Chikkamagaluru Member of Parliament Kota Srinivas Poojary alleged that the Congress government did not build even a single house for the poor in the last two years. The government has been in a pathetic situation, he said.
Former minister Pramod Madhwaraj alleged that Mr. Siddaramaiah has reduced lawful grants to the district. The government was appointing officials who do not have any orientation to render service, but only to harass people, he alleged.
District BJP president Kisihore Kumar Kundapura, MLAs V. Sunil Kumar, A. Kiran Kumar Kodgi, Gururaj Gantihole, Gurme Suresh Shetty, MLC Kishor Kumar Puttur and others were present.
Bharatiya Janata Party legislators, former as well as present, and cadres take out a protest march against the alleged step-motherly treatment to Udupi district by the State Government, in Udupi on March 31, 2025.
| Photo Credit:
UMESH S SHETTIGAR
A protest march was taken out from BJP district office in Kadiyali to the meeting venue at Sri Krishna Mutt parking complex through Kalsanka.
Published – April 01, 2025 01:57 pm IST