Bengaluru, June 6 (IANS) The security was tightened at Chief Minister Siddaramaiah’s official residence, ‘Kaveri’, on Friday fearing flash protest by the opposition BJP and JD(S) workers condemning the failure of the state government in preventing the stampede incident near the Chinnaswamy Stadium that claimed 11 lives and suspension of the senior police officers.

The BJP has expressed outrage against the decision to suspend three senior IPS officers and two other officers of the rank of Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) and a Police Inspector.

Former BJP MP Pratap Simha said in Bengaluru that the government had surrendered to the RCB management in allowing the victory celebration. The police department had handled the situation well during the organisation of high-voltage matches all these years and ensured that no untoward incident happened. The suspension of police officers has brought down the morale of the police department.

Bhaskar Rao, former Bengaluru Police Commissioner and BJP leader, wrote on social media X, “Chief Minister Siddaramiah has gone into panic mode. The suspension of Bengaluru City Police Commissioner is the darkest day in the history of Karnataka police. The prize for telling the Truth and he and his Team slogged the whole night to keep Bengaluru Safe.”

“Everyone in Karnataka knows that it is the uncontrollable Deputy Chief Minister (D.K. Shivakumar) who orchestrated the “Death March” is the main culprit. No Chief Minister has become as helpless, cowardly, nervous and panicky. The government has blood on its hands and now has lost its mind too. The government is now in disaster,” Rao stated.

BJP state President B.Y. Vijayendra said the CM, deputy CM and the Home Minister should have taken moral responsibility but have taken action against the police officers.

He wrote on X, “The death of 11 innocent persons and the suffering of thousands, all due to the selfish exploitation of an event under the guise of an RCB victory celebration, is a tragic outcome. The High Court has taken up a Public Interest Litigation on this matter. At this juncture, instead of taking moral responsibility and resigning, the Chief Minister, Deputy Chief Minister, and Home Minister have shamelessly suspended the Bengaluru City Police Commissioner and other officers.”

This action is a cowardly attempt to escape accountability. The people of Karnataka are deeply saddened, their anger has reached its peak, and the cries of parents who have lost their children are heartbreaking for anyone with an ounce of humanity, he stated.

“The stampede incident has been recorded as a major tragedy in the history of Karnataka. The celebration, held on the steps of Vidhana Soudha, the temple of democracy, in the heart of the capital, without any proper standards, national or state significance, and driven by the greed to exploit the situation, turned the area into a graveyard,” Vijayendra stated.

“The Congress-led government, led by Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, is being cursed by the people of Karnataka. In such a situation, instead of upholding morality and resigning to preserve their honour, the Chief Minister, Deputy Chief Minister, and Home Minister have sacrificed police officials, truly reminiscent of Tughlaq’s rule,” he stated.

Vijayendra said the Congress government is clinging to power with an attitude of who cares. “…whether anyone dies, suffers, we just need to be in power, is tragic. The inevitable situation where the people themselves will overthrow this government is approaching,” he said.

“By making police officers scapegoats, acting like ‘a monkey eating and wiping its mouth on a goat’, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar, and Home Minister G. Parameshwara cannot escape responsibility. I urge all three of them to immediately resign from their positions and preserve their honour,” Vijayendra demanded.

–IANS

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