Bengaluru, April 21 (IANS) Karnataka Home Minister, G. Parameshwara, on Tuesday said that concerns raised by Muslim leaders within the Congress party would be examined, adding that senior party MP and Leader of the Opposition (LoP) in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, would provide direction on the matter.

Responding to questions from reporters, he said the Congress has consistently given priority to members of the Muslim community when it comes to electoral representation.

He also clarified that the party’s practice of granting tickets to family members of deceased leaders has been misinterpreted in the present case.

“Some have sought tickets citing their voter strength, which is not wrong. Due to certain reasons, a ticket has been given to late Shamanur Shivashankarappa’s family, and it should not be interpreted differently.

“This is an internal matter of the Congress party. The party president, the Chief Minister, and all of us will resolve it,” he said.

It can be recalled that a section of Muslim leaders had sought a ticket for a candidate from the community from Davanagere South bypoll. After the poll, with allegations of anti-party activities surfacing, the Congress had stripped MLCs Abdul Jabbar and Naseer Hussain of party positions.

Abdul Jabbar was asked to resign from the post of the party minority wing and Hussain was shunted out from the post of CM’s Political Advisor as he refused to tender his resignation.

Addressing another issue, Parameshwara said he has directed officials to submit a report regarding allegations of harassment by senior officers against a Directorate of Civil Rights Enforcement (DCRE) Inspector, as well as a letter reportedly written by an SP to the DGP against the Mangaluru City Police Commissioner.

Speaking to the media, Parameshwara said he had taken note of reports highlighting the matter.

A DCRE Inspector named Srinivas has made several allegations, while SP Kashinath has written to the DGP raising concerns. “I have sought a report from the DGP on both these matters. Action will be taken based on the findings of the report,” he said.

It can be noted that SS Kashi, a Superintendent of Police (SP) with the DCRE in Karnataka, wrote a letter to the Director General and Inspector General of Police (DG&IGP) M.A. Saleem in April 2026, alleging mental harassment and bias by Mangaluru City Police Commissioner, Sudhir Kumar Reddy.

Police Commissioner Reddy denied the allegations, calling them baseless and stating that departmental enquiries against Kashi were initiated based on his performance and upheld by the Karnataka Appellate Tribunal.

–IANS

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