BJP MLAs continue overnight protest in Karnataka Assembly, demand Excise Minister’s resignation

BENGALURU: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Wednesday continued its overnight protest inside the Vidhana Soudha, with Leader of Opposition R Ashoka and party MLAs spending the night within the Assembly premises as part of their agitation against the Congress government.

The protest, which began a day earlier, entered its second day with BJP legislators being seen taking a morning walk inside the Assembly complex.

The BJP leaders are demanding the resignation of Excise Minister RB Timmapur, alleging large-scale corruption in the Excise Department.

Party MLAs staged a sit-in inside the Vidhana Soudha, accusing the government of shielding the minister despite what they claim is substantial evidence of irregularities and financial misconduct.

BJP MLA CN Ashwath Narayan launched an attack on the Congress-led state government, alleging that corruption has become institutionalised across departments, with the Excise Department being a major contributor.

The BJP leader claimed that the department has become what he described as an “ATM sarkar,” alleging fixed collections from wine vendors, sought postings, and issued and renewed licences.

Ashwath Narayan said, “Each department, especially the Excise Department, is into a lot of corruption. It has become an ‘ATM sarkar’ and they have been collecting regular collections with fixed charges with wine vendors, officers for postings, licence and everything”.

#WATCH | Karnataka LoP R. Ashoka and BJP MLAs continued their overnight protest and stayed inside the Vidhana Soudha. This morning, BJP leaders and MLAs were seen taking a walk in the Assembly.

Demanding the resignation of Excise Minister RB Timmapur over corruption allegations,… pic.twitter.com/PyM7vRQTka

— ANI (@ANI) February 4, 2026

He further alleged that the Excise Minister was collecting nearly Rs 6,000 crore annually through the department. “We have made an allegation that this Minister collects Rs 6,000 crore each year from the Excise Department. So, we are demanding his resignation. We have produced lot of evidence”, he added.

The protest also received support from Janata Dal (Secular), with JD(S) leader C B Suresh Babu joining the chorus against the state government. He said the opposition had been consistently demanding the Excise Minister’s resignation over the last two days, but accused the government of remaining indecisive.

“Yesterday and today, we fought against the excise minister’s resignation. But this government is not making any decision. I will urge the Chief Minister to make the decision immediately,” he said.

Further, BJP MLA Cement Manju said, “There is an accusation of corruption on the Excise minister, R Timmapur. There is also a voice recording on how much money the ministers get. We have held a protest. We have also submitted the pen drive of his voice recording”. The protests have added to the political heat in the ongoing Assembly session.

A day earlier, BJP and JDS leaders started a protest in the Karnataka Legislative Assembly house to demand the resignation of the Excise Minister, RB Timmapur, for alleged corruption in his department.

#WATCH | Bengaluru, Karnataka | BJP leaders staged a protest inside the assembly demanding the resignation of the Excise Minister R.B. Timmapur, alleging rampant corruption in the excise department

(Video Source: BJP) pic.twitter.com/LzATSJlOji

— ANI (@ANI) February 3, 2026

BJP MLA Mahesh Tenginkai alleged corruption charges against the Excise Minister, vowing that the party will protest overnight and continue demanding his resignation when the Speaker arrives on Wednesday. “There are charges of corruption against Excise Minister R.B. Timmapur…even then he’s denying saying that it didn’t happen”, he claimed.

“We will stage a day and night protest in the assembly, which has begun and would go on till the morning and continue even after the Speaker arrives…We will sleep in the Vidhana Soudha tonight and protest. Our demand is his resignation.” he added.

BJP state president B Y Vijayendra also alleged that the excise minister was involved in a multi-crore liquor scam which happened last month, claiming that an audio clip incriminates him.

“It’s more than a Rs 6,000 crore liquor scam that had taken place last month, and the audio clip that had emerged has clearly mentioned the conversation between the district excise commissioner as well as the agent, where the officer clearly mentioned the name of the minister, the excise minister,” he alleged.

“The BJP and the JD(S) have demanded the resignation of the excise minister. We demanded the resignation on the floor of the house,” he stated. Taking aim at Chief Minister Siddaramiah, he accused the CM of protecting the excise minister, further claiming that Karnataka has become an “ATM for the Congress high command”.

“Since the Chief Minister himself is backing the excise minister, it’s known to everybody that Karnataka has become an ATM for the Congress high command. Hence, the entire cabinet is behind the excise minister. Our demand is that the Chief Minister should accept the resignation of the excise minister,” he stated.

Hitting back at the opposition leaders, Congress MLA Ashok Pattan said, “They have no value for the rules”. He accused them of “cooking up stories” about the Excise Minister, clarifying, “The Chief Minister would have taken action if there had been something wrong.”

On January 23, BJP MLA and Leader of Opposition R Ashoka demanded the resignation of the Karnataka Excise Minister Ramappa Timmapur after senior officers from his department were caught allegedly accepting a bribe for issuing a bar licence. R Ashoka alleged that Minister Ramappa Timmapur was involved in the scandal.

“He collected the money from the wine shops, bars, and liquor. They collected between Rs 2000 and Rs 3000 crores for the Assam, Kerala, and Tamil Nadu elections. It’s a big scandal. We demanded the resignation of the excise minister,” he said. “We will fight for the resignation if not the CM has to resign,” he added. (ANI)