Bengaluru, Sept 11: Karnataka Home Minister G. Parameshwara has landed in controversy after being spotted at an event reportedly organised by the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), the BJP’s student wing.
The event marked the 500th birth anniversary of Rani Abbakka, the 16th-century Tuluva queen of the Chowta dynasty who resisted Portuguese invaders and is often hailed as one of India’s earliest women freedom fighters.
Reacting to criticism, Parameshwara clarified on Tuesday that he had not “consciously” attended any ABVP function. “I am a true Congressman and will die as a Congressman. People have known my politics for 35 years… my ideological commitment to Congress is unquestionable. I don’t have to prove it again and again,” he told reporters.
Explaining further, he said: “When I went to Tiptur for a review meeting, a procession was passing through. I learnt it was in honour of Rani Abbakka. I stopped and paid tribute. That was not an ABVP programme, and I didn’t know who the organiser was.”
The explanation came after BJP leaders accused him of playing “soft Hindutva” politics. BJP’s Pradeep Bhandari mocked the Congress for “bleeding leaders” who are unhappy with Rahul Gandhi’s “anti-India rhetoric.”
He also linked the row to a previous controversy when Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar sang the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) anthem in the Assembly last month, sparking criticism within the Congress. Though Shivakumar apologised, the incident reflected the factional rift in the state unit of the party.
Congress MLA H.D. Ranganath later defended Shivakumar, saying: “It is about saluting the land that gave you birth. There is nothing wrong.” But party insiders admit the issue underscored ongoing tensions over Shivakumar’s chief ministerial ambitions.
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