Mangaluru: Alleging breach of privilege orchestrated by the Congress leaders, BJP legislators of Dakshina Kannada staged a protest in Mangaluru today.
State BJP unit chief and Dakshina Kannada member of parliament, Nalin Kumar Kateel, led the protest in front of the Deputy Commissioner's office on Monday.
The protest was attended by BJP MLAs Umanath Kotian, Rajesh Naik, D Vedavyas Kamath, Y Bharath Shetty, Harish Poonja, Bhagirathi Murulya, and MLCs Kota Srinivas Poojary and Pratapsimha Nayak.
The BJP's allegations centered around what they perceived as a growing trend of interference and undue influence from the former MLAs of Congress and Congress leaders in the region since the Congress government came to power in the state.
Speaking to reporters Nalin Kumar Kateel accused the Congress party of engaging in divisive "hate politics" and outlined incidents that they believe demonstrated the breach of privilege.
"Ever since the Congress came into power, there has been a blatant attempt to undermine the rights of BJP MLAs and obstruct their functioning," Nalin said.
He cited a letter purportedly written by Congress General Secretary Mithun Rai to the Deputy Commissioner recommending the transfer of certain officials. Nalin argued that such actions were not in line with democratic principles, as they seemingly favored the Congress party's interests over the elected representatives.
"The Deputy Commissioner's approval of a letter from a party office bearer, who lacks representative legitimacy, underscores the extent to which the Congress party operates without restraint," Nalin alleged.
Nalin mentioned the incident of postponement of the inauguration of the Irvail gram panchayat building in Moodbidri assembly constituency and similar incident in Bantwal.
Earlier addressing the protesters Moodabidri MLA Umanath Kotian criticized the undue intervention by Congress leaders within the administrative domain.
"The question arises whether it's the government that holds the reins of the state or if it's the party dictating terms. The unsettling reality is that attempts have been made to curtail the MLA's access to his own constituency's panchayat office. The specter of hooliganism looms large during Panchayat elections, and this discordant behavior stands in stark contrast to democratic principles," he said.
"The Deputy Commissioner's responsiveness to the demands of a party leader for personnel transfers underscores a wrong practice," he added.
MLC Kota Srinivas Poojary too attacked the government for the contradiction between the training provided to legislators on their roles and responsibilities and the observed violations of privileges experienced by BJP MLAs in the district.
"The very government that provided training to the legislators about the roles and responsibilities seems to be disregarding the privileges of BJP MLAs. A concerning trend has emerged, implying that officials are being directed not to heed the voices of opposition MLAs from the BJP," he said.
"It is unprecedented in the state's history that elected representatives have resorted to staging a dharna right outside the Deputy Commissioner's office," he said.
