‘List your leaders who resigned over similar incidents’: Siddaramaiah accuses BJP of politicising Bengaluru stampede

BENGALURU: Rejecting to the BJP’s demands for his and his cabinet colleagues’ resignations over the Bengaluru stampede, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Tuesday challenged State BJP leaders to first publish a list of their leaders who had resigned in similar past incidents.

“I request the BJP leaders in the state to first release a list of BJP leaders who resigned during similar incidents in the past before demanding our resignation,” Siddaramaiah said in a statement.

He termed the stampede near the Chinnaswamy Stadium during the IPL victory celebration of RCB an “unfortunate accident.”

“As a responsible government, we have taken accountability for the incident. We have suspended senior police officers, including the Bengaluru City Police Commissioner, and transferred the Chief of the State Intelligence Department. My political secretary has also been relieved of his duties.

Additionally, we have constituted a one-member commission led by retired Justice John Michael Cunha to conduct a thorough investigation into the matter,” the chief minister said.

He said that despite taking “such decisive” actions, the BJP leaders in the state continue to protest.

“This makes it evident that their motives are political rather than driven by genuine concern for the people. Politicising tragedies is not new to the BJP. It is ingrained in their DNA to pounce like vultures over every incident of death, accident, or violence. Even if an elephant dies in their courtyard, they have the habit of turning their attention to a fly on their neighbour’s plate. The people of Karnataka have understood this pattern of behaviour,” he said.

The chief minister said that his government empathises with the grief and anguish of the families affected by every tragedy.

“This is why we do not exploit such incidents for political gain. However, given the BJP leaders’ repeated attempts to incite the public by dredging up these incidents, we feel compelled to expose their hypocrisy by bringing certain incidents during their rule to the attention of the people,” he said.

The chief minister said that in 2002, during the Gujarat riots, approximately 2,000 innocent people from various communities lost their lives. Despite Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s suggestion to take responsibility and resign, the then-Chief Minister Narendra Modi neither stepped down nor expressed any remorse to date. “Those demanding our resignation should first address this.”

“In April this year, during the terrorist attack in Pahalgam, 26 Indians lost their lives. Our party did not demand the resignation of the Prime Minister over this incident. We merely requested a special parliamentary session to discuss it, which was also denied by the Prime Minister. Even now, the perpetrators of this attack have not been identified. Isn’t this a failure of the central government? Who is accountable for this failure? Is it Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, Rahul Gandhi, or Prime Minister Narendra Modi?” the Chief Minister asked.

The chief minister said that for the past two years, Manipur has been engulfed in violence. Hundreds have lost their lives, yet the BJP Chief Minister, Biren Singh, clung to power for 20 months. He finally resigned only after the Supreme Court intervened, and violence continues to plague the state. Shouldn’t the Union Home Minister take responsibility for this? the chief minister asked.

“In Gujarat, the Morbi bridge collapse claimed 140 lives. In January this year, 30 pilgrims lost their lives during the Maha Kumbh Mela. Were the Chief Ministers of those states not from the BJP? Not only did they not resign, but those governments have also not conducted a proper investigation into these incidents. Given this, what moral authority does the BJP in our state have to demand our resignation?” he asked.

“Our government is answerable to the 7 crore people of Karnataka. Hence, in the stampede case, preliminary action has been taken against those who appeared negligent. A comprehensive and impartial investigation is being conducted under the leadership of a retired judge. Based on the commission’s report, strict action will be taken against the culprits without hesitation.I urge the BJP leaders in the state to abandon their street theatrics and act per their conscience,” he added. (ANI)