Belagavi, 12 Dec

Tensions flared in the Assembly on Thursday as BJP MLAs barged into Speaker UT Khader’s chamber, expressing strong objections to his handling of the proceedings. The confrontation came amidst heated debates over the recent police lathi charge on Panchamasali Lingayat protesters, with the ruling Congress and Opposition BJP trading accusations.

The issue arose when Congress MLA Vijayanand Kashappanavar, himself a leader of the Panchamasali Lingayat community, criticized the decision of previous BJP government to scrap the 4 per cent Muslim reservation and reallocate it equally between the Lingayat and Vokkaliga communities.

He alleged that the BJP government, under Basavaraj Bommai, had backtracked on its decision by assuring the Supreme Court it would not implement the reservation changes.

BJP members objected, insisting that the discussion focus solely on the police action during Tuesday’s protests near Suvarna Vidhana Soudha, where the Panchamasali Lingayat community demanded inclusion in the 2A category of the OBC reservation matrix (15 per cent), as opposed to the current 3B category (5 per cent).

The protests turned violent earlier this week, with stone pelting from demonstrators and subsequent lathi charges by police.

During the Assembly debate, Kashappanavar accused the BJP of misleading the community and the Panchamasali seer, alleging that the protest was “sponsored and instigated” by the party.

He also claimed RSS members were involved in the stone pelting, sparking a heated exchange between BJP and Congress MLAs.

The situation escalated when Speaker Khader allowed Revenue Minister Krishna Byre Gowda to speak after Home Minister G Parameshwara had already addressed the lathi charge issue. BJP MLAs argued that their voices should have been heard first.

Gowda criticized the saffron party, blaming its past policies for the "injustice" faced by the Panchamasali Lingayat community, citing the BJP's affidavit to the Supreme Court on reservation issues.

Angered by Gowda’s statement, BJP MLA Sunil Kumar raised a point of order, questioning why the Minister was permitted to speak.

The Speaker dismissed the objection, prompting BJP members to raise slogans and tear papers in protest. PTI