Citing the Centre’s lockdown guidelines, the State government has denied permission to Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) president-designate D.K. Shivakumar to hold a programme to formally take over as State party chief. This is the third time the event has been postponed.
A few days ago, Mr. Shivakumar wrote to Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa seeking permission to take oath as State Congress president on June 14 at a simple function at the party office in Bengaluru.
In a tweet, the KPCC alleged that the BJP government was indulging in “vendetta politics” by denying permission to Mr. Shivakumar to conduct the programme in a simple manner. “On June 14, pratijna dina was to be held at 7,800 locations across Karnataka with 10 lakh+ Congress karyakartas attending it, with care taken w.r.t [with regard to] safety precautions for COVID-19 and social distancing. By denying permission again, the BJP government is indulging in vendetta politics,” the unit said in the tweet.
Though he was appointed as KPCC president in March, Mr. Shivakumar could not take oath following the enforcement of the COVID-19-induced lockdown.
