Karnataka Congress leaders detained while trying to besiege Yediyurappa\'s office

Bengaluru: Several Karnataka Congress leaders led by Dinesh Gundu Rao and Siddaramaiah were detained by the police when they marched to picket chief minister B S Yediyurappa's office in Bengaluru Saturday.

The party organised a protest march to protest the alleged misuse of the police by the BJP government.

The march began from the Gandhi statue on Race Course Road and led to a traffic gridlock. Gundu Rao and Bangalore rural MP D K Suresh tried to jump a barricade erected by the police, but were stopped before they could reach the chief minister's office.

The state Congress organised the protest over the sedition case filed against a Bidar school and the arrest of a parent and headmistress (now out on bail) for staging a drama portraying prime minister Narendra Modi in poor light.

The opposition party alleged that the law was being violated across the state with false cases being filed for sedition against political opponents, especially those from the Congress and those opposing the Citizenship Amendment Act and the National Register of Citizens.

Siddaramaiah alleged that the BJP was using the police to suppress the Congress. He pointed out that cases have been booked against Congress leader U T Khader and a student from Mysuru for opposing the CAA and NRC, while no cases have been filed against ruling party leaders like Somashekara Reddy and AnantKumar Hegde for making inflammatory speeches.