Angry Siddaramaiah raises hand at police officer at rally, comes under fire

BJP workers entered the venue, waved black flags and raised slogans against the state government.

As police scrambled to detain the protestors, Siddaramaiah appeared angry at the disruption. A video showed Surjewala trying to placate the CM and whispering in his ear. “No, no, no,” Siddaramaiah is heard replying, before calling the officer, Additional SP Narayan Bharamani, to the stage.

“Hey, come here,” he is heard saying in the video, before asking: “Who is the SP? What are you doing?” The video shows Siddaramaiah taking a step towards the ASP with his hand raised as if to slap him, while a gunman tries to step between the two.

BJP state chief B Y Vijayendra called the CM’s conduct “inexcusable” and sought action against him for threatening a government officer.

CM @siddaramaiah’s public outburst against senior police officer comes as no surprise – after all, even the sacred Doors of Vidhana Soudha, the Temple of Democracy, have previously borne the brunt of his anger.

Its apparent now that our CM is deep under the influence of Pakistan… pic.twitter.com/KWRZZPCodo

— Vijayendra Yediyurappa (@BYVijayendra) April 28, 2025

“It’s apparent now that our CM is deep under the influence of Pakistan model of Sharia Governance & not the Gandhian Principles that India proudly follows! With each act, Siddaramaiah appears more determined to qualify himself for the citizenship of Pakistan!” he said.

“When a senior police officer finds himself helpless and publicly intimidated by the highest elected official in the state, one must ask: What security and justice can the ordinary citizen expect under such incompetent governance? The Chief Minister’s conduct is inexcusable and must be subjected to the same legal scrutiny and consequences that any ordinary citizen would face, especially for threatening a government officer,” he said in a post on X.

The Karnataka BJP, too, shared the video of the incident on X. “Who said Aurangzeb and Hitler are no more? Karnataka’s Wazir-E-Ala Siddaramaiah publicly shames and nearly slaps an Assistant Superintendent of Police during a Political rally in Belagavi! Absolute abuse of power and disgraceful display of arrogance against those who protect the law!” it said.