Congress to go ahead with 10-day padyatra in Karnataka

Even as the Karnataka government announced various additional measures to combat the spread of Covid, Congress, which is planning a 10-day ‘padyatra’ (foot march) from Mekedatu to Bengaluru, said there was no question of withdrawing it.

With the number of Covid cases more than doubling in the State in the last three days, the Karnataka government has announced several additional measures, including extending night curfew till January 19 and weekend curfew from Friday evening to Monday mornings, apart from various other steps. The State government has also specifically barred all rallies, dharnas and protests, with even weddings and other major social events only permitted a maximum of 200 people, and that too after following necessary protocols.

Cauvery issue

Congress though is planning a ‘Walk for Water’ march from Mekedatu, 100 kilometres away from Bengaluru on the border with Tamil Nadu, demanding that the government immediately take up the construction of a balancing reservoir on Cauvery River. The project is meant to augment supply of drinking water to Bengaluru. However, successive Tamil Nadu governments, including the current one, have objected to the project implementation, saying that a reservoir will reduce Cauvery water flow.

Lakhs to participate

President of Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC), DK Shivakumar said that they would go ahead with the padyatra and said “this a BJP curfew and not a Covid lockdown. Ours is a ‘walk for water’ There is no question of withdrawing it.” He said that the party will follow Covid appropriate behavior during the rally. A team of 100 hundred doctors is already in place, he added. Congress is expecting lakhs of party workers, leaders and members of public would be participating in the march.

The KPCC President also claimed that a Covid related lockdown was not necessary saying “already people are suffering, be it traders, industrialists, workers. To what extent is it necessary to lockdown again? Businesses have been suffering for the last two years. These actions by the government are going to disrupt the lives of traders, tourists, and state vendors even more,” he added.

Responding to criticism that the padyatra might exacerbate the Covid-19 situation, Shivakumar said, “Sudhakar (the state health minister) should first file a case against (Chief Minister) Bommai and (senior BJP leader) Yediyurappa for attending various weddings and social events and violating the Covid protocol.”

However K Sudhakar, Minister of Health and Family Welfare, criticising the Congress stance on the padyatra said, “We haven’t issued these rules with a negative intent. We have done so as the disease is spreading rapidly.”

The minister said that he hoped Congress may change their stance after seeing the increase in cases in several others states like Maharashtra, Delhi and others.

Political analyst L Manjunath though criticised the Congress move saying, “Given that the state is facing a pandemic, the party could have waited or applied pressure on the government through other means. This is a proxy fight within the Congress for leadership between Shivakumar and former CM Siddaramiah. The padyatra is a show of strength. The worry is that, will this event turn into a super spreader?”

With inputs from BL interns Haripriya Sureban and Isha Rautela

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