Congress takes out torchlight procession in Bengaluru to condemn Priyanka Gandhi Vadra’s arrest and farmers’ deaths in Lakhimpur Kheri

Ex-CM Siddaramaiah, Leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Assembly, participated in the procession.

The Congress leadership in Karnataka took out a torchlight procession on October 4 in Bengaluru to condemn the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for the deaths of farmers at Lakhimpur Kheri, about 140 km from Lucknow, on October 3 and the detention of Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, All-India Congress Committee general secretary in charge of Uttar Pradesh. Senior leaders of the Congress, including D.K. Shivakumar, Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee president, and Siddaramaiah, Leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Assembly, participated in the procession.

Speaking to mediapersons during the procession, Shivakumar said, “There is Ravana’s Rajya in the country. That is why women and annadatas (farmers) have no protection. This is not merely the murder of four farmers but the murder of the entire farming community and the murder of democracy. It is condemnable that Priyanka Gandhi, who set out to meet the family members of the deceased farmers, was detained. Male police officers have manhandled Priyanka Gandhi without any warrant. This is an insult to women.”

Siddaramaiah condemned the detention of Priyanka Gandhi and compared the death of farmers to the Jallianwala Bagh massacre. Taking to Twitter, he said, “In the goonda-raj of Yogi Adityanath, there is no honour and safety for Dalits, farmers, women and the poor. When there is no Constitutional rule in Uttar Pradesh, the president should intervene and dismiss the government. The BJP cannot tolerate any opposition and, in its actions, is demonstrating its ‘Talibani’ mindset. It is condemnable that Priyanka Gandhi was arrested.”

Farmers’ organisations across Karnataka protested against the death of farmers in Lakhimpur Kheri. Protests were taken out in Mandya, Tumakuru, Chamarajanagar, Hassan, Kolar, Mysuru and Bengaluru.