'Siddaramaiah was eating badam halwa while RCB fans died': BJP
What's the story
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Karnataka has slammed Chief Minister Siddaramaiah for allegedly ignoring a deadly stampede incident that killed 11 people on Wednesday. The party claimed the stampede had started even before the CM reached the venue for a Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) felicitation event. They accused him of going ahead with the event and later dining at a hotel despite knowing about the tragedy.
Criticism escalates
CM went to a hotel to eat badam halwa
Chaluvadi Narayanaswamy, the Leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Council, said Siddaramaiah chose to eat badam halwa at a hotel instead of rushing to meet the injured. "Instead of rushing to the hospital to meet the injured and take stock of the situation, the Chief Minister went to a hotel to eat badam halwa," he said.
Call for responsibility
Vijayendra demands judicial inquiry into incident
Karnataka BJP President BY Vijayendra also questioned why celebrations continued despite news of deaths and injuries emerging. Vijayendra said, "Even before the players had left...Taj West End Hotel, the stampede had already occurred near the Chinnaswamy Stadium." He added, "At the time of the incident, ambulances were not arranged. The state government must take full responsibility...The government has ordered an investigation by a magistrate but not a judicial inquiry. The CM and ministers have become overly obsessed with publicity."
Joshi's rebuttal
Union Minister Joshi demands judicial inquiry into incident
Earlier, Union Minister Pralhad Joshi also slammed the CM for drawing parallels with the Kumbh Mela tragedy. "Kumbh and this is incomparable. When police denied permission, why did you force them? My second question to Siddaramaiah is, after the deaths, you continue your celebration? Why did Deputy Chief Minister (DK Shivakumar) go to receive them?" he asked. He demanded a judicial inquiry into Wednesday's incident, saying it was highly condemnable.