A day after the arrest of DK Shivakumar, a Congress MLA and former Karnataka Minister, by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in connection with a money laundering case, protests broke out in the Old Mysore districts along the Bengaluru-Mysuru highway.

While Bengaluru was unaffected Congress supporters staged demonstrations and road blockades in Ramnagara, Mandya, Hassan, Chamarajanagar and parts of Mysuru. Violence broke out in some places.

According to the police, incidents of stone pelting and arson, including buses being torched, were reported since Tuesday night. Shivakumar’s home town, Kanakapura, was the worst hit with a dawn-to-dusk bandh (shutdown).

Karnataka Home Minister Basavaraj Bommai appealed for peace. “They (Congress) can protest peacefully. Maintaining law and order is the duty of the government. The Congress was part of the government that just exited office, we expect them to maintain peace,” he said.

Congress party workers in Old Mysore districts took out rallies in protesting Shivakumar’s arrest Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge said Shivakumar has been arrested to ‘demoralise him and the party’.

Kharge said, “As per the rules, whenever the I-T Department and ED called, he cooperated. Is he absconding? Why are they doing this? Just to harass and mentally torture him. I condemn this.”

Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa said: “I pray to God that he comes out of everything. I have neither hated any one, nor have I wished bad for anyone. Law will take its course. If he comes out (of the charges), I will be happier than any one.”

Opposition leader and former Chief Minister Siddaramaiah took part in the protest in Mysuru and said he was confident that Shivakumar ‘will come out clean in the investigation’ and the nation will understand the ‘ulterior motives of the BJP’, he claimed.

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