Siddaramaiah, JDS clash over 145;foundation honours146;

A row at a foundation stone-laying ceremony for a healthcare centre at a village in Mysore district turned into a clash between supporters of Congress leader Siddaramaiah...

A row at a foundation stone-laying ceremony for a healthcare centre at a village in Mysore district turned into a clash between supporters of Congress leader Siddaramaiah and Janata Dal Secular workers, on Saturday evening.

The violence, following the detention of Siddaramaiah and 130 of his supporters, saw mobs torch five buses and a motorcycle, leading to the clamping of prohibitory orders for three days in the district. Siddaramaiah, former JDS leader and deputy chief minister, was released on Saturday night. The incidents occurred in the Chamundesh- wari Assembly constituency, which witnessed a bitter electoral battle between the Congress and the JDS in December 2006, after Siddaramaiah quit the JDS to join the Congress.

Incidents leading to the violence on Saturday saw Siddaramaiah being prevented from laying the foundation stone for the primary health centre at Jaypura village on the outskirts of Mysore by JDS workers. The JDS workers claimed that representatives of the state government, like district-in-charge minister and JDS leader G T Deve Gowda, should be the ones doing the honors of laying the foundation stone. Siddaramaiah claimed that he has the right to do the honors as a local MLA.

Following the protests by the JDS workers, the Mysore rural police clamped prohibitory orders in Jaypura village and asked Siddaramaiah and his supporters to leave the area. The Congress leader and his men, however, began protesting and staged a dharna against the police action on the local roads leading to their detention. As news of the detention of the OBC leader spread, incidents of violence occurred around the region.

Other Congress leaders and former ministers in the area swung into action staging protests around the region. A Mysore bandh call made by former Congress minister H Vishwanath passed off quietly on Sunday. State Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge has said his party will now take up the issue during the Assembly session on Monday.

Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy, who led the acrimonious JDS electoral battle against Siddaramaiah in December 2006, said his government would allow the law to take its course. 8220;We do not believe in vindictive politics and have respect for all Opposition members,8221; he said. Siddaramaiah claimed that the police had arrested him without informing the state Assembly speaker despite an Assembly session being in progress. Mysore police said they had only detained the Congress leader as per routine procedure prescribed by the Karnataka Police Act.