Leaders of the Congress party drew severe criticism on social media on May 8 for organising a saree distribution programme to mark Mother’s Day in Arakalgud without adequate preparation.
Hundreds of women, who had turned up for the event, jostled with one another to reach the distribution point, leading to chaos and confusion. Many women with infants were worried for the safety of their children. As they were stuck amidst people, a few were seen carrying their babies on their shoulders.
The programme was organised by supporters of H.P. Sridhar Gowda, who took voluntary retirement as a police officer in Bengaluru, and joined the Congress. He is one of the contenders for the Congress ticket in the next Assembly elections.
The organisers had planned to gift sarees to 5,000 women after the Mother’s Day programme, which was attended by KPCC president D.K. Shivakumar, working president R. Dhruvanarayan, and former minister and actress Umashree.
As video clips and photos of the event went viral on social media, many people criticised the organisers. Some believed that the saree distribution programme was aimed at wooing voters in the run-up to the Assembly elections in 2023. There were comments on the poor management at the venue where women ended up jostling with each other for sarees.
