Gadag, 4 August

In a major show of dissent against the ruling government, 21 Congress members of the Gadag-Betageri City Municipal Council resigned en masse on Tuesday to protest the exclusion of senior party leader and Gadag MLA HK Patil from the newly expanded Cabinet.

The resignations were submitted to Deputy Commissioner CN Sridhar by 16 elected Congress councillors and five nominated members.

They accused the High Command of repeatedly neglecting North Karnataka and said the denial of a Cabinet berth to Patil reflected the region's continued marginalisation. They also raised the demand for a separate North Karnataka state as part of their protest.

Patil was the law and parliamentary affairs minister in the Siddaramaiah-led government. He had served four terms as an MLC and thrice as an MLA. 

Those who resigned included Krishna Parapur, Suresh Kattimani, Barkat Ali Mulla, Ravi Kamtar, Chandru Karisomangoudra, Imtiyaz Shirahatti, Padma Katagi, Parveen Banu Mulla, Shakuntala Akki and Jainuddin Namaji, among others.

Patil’s supporters also assembled at the Deputy Commissioner’s old office circle in Gadag and formed a human chain, blocking traffic in protest.