Defending the personnel of Vijayapura Rural and Kaup police stations who posed in saffron attire during the Dasara festivities, Home Minister Araga Jnanendra on Monday accused Congress leader Siddaramaiah for raising such issues to gain political mileage among minorities.
“Is the saffron colour banned in the country? Were they wearing any banned colour? Saffron is a symbol of sacrifice and is part of our national flag. For political mileage, Mr. Siddaramaiah comments on such things to make the minorities happy,” the Minister told The Hindu . “Why does he fear the saffron colour? Why should it be commented upon? He does not comment on wearing white (skull) cap or white kurtha. In fact, many police personnel offer namaz during duty hours. They take a break from duty to offer namaz. We are respecting it.”
The Congress leader had, on Sunday, objected to police personnel at the two stations wearing saffron attire during the Dasara festivities. While the personnel in Vijayapura wore a saffron shawl, at Kaup police wore a saffron shirt. Tagging the photographs, Mr. Siddaramaiah accused Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai of taking Karnataka towards ‘Jungle Raj’ and asked him to resign if he cannot rule as per the constitutional provisions.
Saying that wearing saffron robes during religious festivals was a common practice, the Home Minister said, “We also have to respect the private lives of police personnel. It is part of our culture to be in traditional dress during puja. When they are on duty, they will have to be in uniform. There are policemen who do not wear uniform even during duty hours. When he Mr. Siddaramaiah was Chief Minister, he was brandishing a sword during Tipu Jayanti. Was that right?”
Mr. Jnanendra also ruled out taking any action against the police personnel in question.
