Congress will raise Bengaluru violence issue in assembly: Siddaramaiah
Bengaluru: Demanding a fair probe into last month's violence in the city, Leader of the Opposition in the Karnataka Assembly Siddaramaiah on Wednesday said the Congress will raise the issue during the coming monsoon session of the state legislature.
The former Chief Minister, who was under COVID-19 treatment when the incident occurred, today visited D J Halli and adjoining areas, where rioters were involved in arson on the night of August 11.
"I urge the government that the inquiry has to happen as soon as possible. It should be fair and the guilty should be punished," Siddaramaiah said.
Speaking to reporters here, he said whoever was responsible and however influential they are, they should be punished if found guilty. Innocent people should not be punished, he said.
Further pointing out that he has demanded constitution of a judicial commission to probe the incident for the truth to come out, Siddaramaiah said "even today I demand a judicial commission, headed by a sitting High Court judge.
"We will raise the issue (Bengaluru violence) in the assembly," he said in response to a question. The monsoon session of the legislature will be held from September 21 to 30.
Three people were killed after police opened fire on August 11 night to quell a mob that went on a rampage over an inflammatory social media post allegedly put out by P Naveen, a relative of Pulakeshinagar Congress MLA R Akhanda Srinivasa Murthy.
The MLAs residence and a police station at D J Halli were torched by the rioters, who also set ablaze many police and private vehicles, besides looting the belongings of the legislator and his sister.
More than 300 people have been arrested in connection with the violence and investigation is on.
Also, retired judge, Justice H S Kempanna has been appointed as the "Claims Commissioner" to assess the damage caused during the violence and to recover the costs from the culprits.
To a query about the alleged involvement of some Congress corporators behind the incident, Siddaramaiah asked how someone can be blamed unless it is proved or there is evidence.
"I don't want to talk about any party, the inquiry is still in the preliminary stage. We cannot say such things like BJP leaders and the Home Minister are doing at this stage."
Siddaramaiah opined that if the police had announced Naveen's arrest to the mob immediately, mostly this level of violence wouldn't have happened.
Asserting that only the guilty should be punished, he said, "according to some, there are innocents among those arrested, during the investigation if there is no evidence against them, they should be released. Innocents should not be punished, they should not be sent to jail."
Reacting to this, BJP National General Secretary B L Santosh, who has been critical of Siddaramaiah, accusing him of not condemning the rioters who attacked the house of his own party Dalit MLA Murthy, reiterated his allegation.
"Ex-CM from @INCKarnataka just gives sanction for destruction & riots in case of even flimsy grievance. No wonder he was voted out conclusively by voters of Karnataka. Cant condemn riots or attack on his Partys Dalit MLA, but bats for rioters," Santosh tweeted.
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Bengaluru (PTI): Karnataka Minister Priyank Kharge met a high-level delegation from Chile, led by Chilean Foreign Minister Francisco Pérez Mackenna, at Vidhana Soudha on Thursday to discuss collaboration in emerging technologies, clean energy, and startup ecosystems, officials said.
The delegation’s visit to Bengaluru, as part of its India engagements, underscores Karnataka’s growing prominence as a preferred partner for global collaborations in technology, innovation, and startup ecosystems, officials added.
The discussions reflected strong alignment between Chile’s evolving technology-focused growth strategy and Karnataka’s established leadership in innovation and deep-tech ecosystems, according to a statement.
Both sides explored opportunities to build partnerships that move beyond traditional sectors and focus on innovation-led growth, talent exchange, and market access.
The meeting focused on opportunities in renewable energy, including green hydrogen and sustainable industrial innovation.
Other potential areas of collaboration included marine biotechnology, aquaculture technologies, and AI applications across traditional industries.
According to the state IT minister, Karnataka is now a global hub for deep-tech, AI, biotech, aerospace, and advanced research, backed by one of the world’s strongest talent pipelines.
“As partners under the global innovation alliance, we must move beyond agreements on paper to actionable collaboration,” Kharge said.
“We are keen to work with Chile on startup exchanges, market access programmes, and building joint innovation corridors, including R&D centres, incubators, and accelerators. Chile’s position as a gateway to Latin America presents a significant opportunity for our startups to scale globally,” he added.
Officials said the engagement builds on the Letter of Intent signed between the Government of Karnataka and the Government of Chile during the Bengaluru Tech Summit, which established a framework for collaboration in startups, emerging technologies, research, and skill development under the Global Innovation Alliance.
Mackenna, Chile’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, said the country is actively advancing its transition toward a knowledge- and technology-driven economy.
“Our engagement with Karnataka reflects our interest in building strong innovation partnerships that enable technology exchange, talent collaboration, and access to dynamic startup ecosystems,” he added.
“We see significant potential to work together in sectors such as clean energy, digital technologies, and emerging industries, while also strengthening Chile’s role as a bridge between India and Latin America,” he said.
