Right to protest: Karnataka BJP’s stand then and now

Even as the state government denied permission for protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and imposed CrPC Section 144 in various parts of the state, a glimpse into the recent past shows that the BJP itself, when it was in the opposition, has forgone no opportunity to take to streets. This year alone, the party staged protests thrice — in May, June and July - against the previous Congress-JD(S) coalition.

DH looks back at four recent instances in which BJP asserted its right to protest.

July 2019: Protesting against delay in putting to vote the then Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy’s motion of confidence, about 100 BJP legislators staged a sleep-in protest in the Assembly. They slept on the floor of the House overnight to voice their dissent against the delay in Kumaraswamy’s floor test.

June 2019: BJP leaders took out a protest against the state government over the IMA scam, farm loans and a move to hand over 3,667 acres land to JSW Steel. The party had alleged that the government intended to sell the land to the Jindals at a throwaway price.

May 2019: The BJP led state-wide protests against arrests of right-wing activists. The party alleged that the Congress-JD(S) coalition was misusing the government machinery to target right-wing activists. At the same time, the party also launched online campaign #EmergencyKarnataka, protesting against these arrests.

November, 2018: The BJP hit the streets in protest against the government’s decision to celebrate Tipu Jayanti, in spite of prohibitory orders in several districts. The police had detained several BJP party workers in Hubballi and Madikeri.