Bengaluru, 31 Aug

Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar on Saturday said the 'Raj Bhavan Chalo' was organised by the Congress party to protest against the alleged misuse of the office of the Governor.

Shivakumar, who is the Congress Karnataka unit president, said the march is mainly to ensure that Raj Bhavan should not become the office of a political party. "I want to clarify that we organised 'Raj Bhavan Chalo' not on behalf of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah. The matter is in the court of law..." the Deputy CM said.

"This 'Raj Bhavan Chalo' is to make sure that the Governor's office should not become an office of a party. We are going there (Raj Bhavan) with a demand to protect the sanctity of this constitutional post," he said.

Shivakumar lamented that there were many pending petitions, seeking permission to prosecute some individuals, with the Governor.

Holding placards, banners, posters and raising slogans condemning Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot, the Congress leaders led by Shivakumar took out a march, which saw the participation of several ministers, Congress MLAs and MPs. Later, they handed over a memorandum to Gehlot.

Earlier, Siddaramaiah, his cabinet colleagues, Congress MLAs and MPs staged a sit-in demonstration near the Gandhi statue on the Vidhana Soudha premises here.

The Congress government is at loggerheads with Gehlot after he granted permission to investigate and prosecute the CM in the alleged Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) site allotment scam.

Siddaramaiah's wife Parvathi is accused of getting compensatory sites in the Mysuru upmarket against the 'illegal acquisition' of 3 Acres and 16 guntas of her agricultural land in Kesare village in Mysuru by the MUDA.

The Chief Minister has been alleging that the Governor's office was misused to 'destabilise' the Congress government in the state.

Siddaramaiah has also accused Gehlot of discriminating against him while granting permission for prosecution.

Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot on August 16 accorded sanction for prosecution of the CM under Section 17A of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 and Section 218 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 for the commission of the alleged offences as mentioned in the petitions of three social activists.