K’taka Cong protests over HM Shah’s remarks on Ambedkar; BJP holds counter-protest
Belagavi: The legislators of the ruling Congress party staged a protest by holding pictures of Dr. B.R. Ambedkar in the Legislative Assembly in Belagavi on Thursday, condemning the statement of Union Home Minister Amit Shah regarding Babasaheb in the Lok Sabha.
The ruling party members led by the Magadi MLA H.C. Balakrishna interrupted the House while Minister for Health Dinesh Gundu Rao was giving an answer to the House over the supply of sub-standard and spurious drugs and medicines.
The House was also scheduled to discuss the Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) case today.
Balakrishna demanded that a resolution needs to be passed in the House over alleged remarks against Dr Ambedkar.
The Congress MLAs took out posters of Ambedkar and started raising slogans of “Ambedkar zindabad”. They claimed that Amit Shah had insulted Dr Ambedkar in his remarks in the Lok Sabha.
Opposing the move by the Congress MLAs, the BJP and JD(S) MLAs slammed them and claimed that they were twisting the remarks by Amit Shah.
When the House turned chaotic, Speaker U.T. Khader adjourned it.
The Congress MLAs in the presence of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah continued “Ambedkar Zindabad” slogans in the House. Later, they placed posters on their respective desks and went out.
Meanwhile, Deputy CM and State Congress President D.K. Shivakumar stated near the Suvarna Vidhana Soudha in Belagavi on Thursday that, “Who else can advocate for Ambedkar and the Constitution if not for us? Ambedkar gave us the Constitution, and it is our duty to honour him. We all believe in Basavanna’s principle of ‘Kayakave Kailasa (work is worship).”
“We need to have further discussions on the insult made towards the Constitution and Ambedkar,” Shivakumar stressed.
Countering the poster war by the ruling Congress party, the BJP also brought posters bearing the slogan ‘Congress insulted Ambedkar’ into the House and placed them on their desks.