Activists belonging to the Congress party and Dalit organisations held a protest in front of BJP MP Pratap Simha’s office in Mysuru on Wednesday demanding an apology for his remarks against Congress leader Priyank Kharge.
The activists, who gathered outside Mr. Simha’s office at Jaladarshini Guest House, raised slogans against the MP for speaking lightly about Mr. Priyank Kharge and his name.
The activists sought to point out that veteran Congress leader M. Mallikarjun Kharge had named his children after drawing inspiration from Buddhism.
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The activists also sought to clarify that Mr. Priyank Kharge does not use any of the ultra luxury cars named by Mr .Simha. Also, Mr. Priyank Kharge had won two elections in 2013 and 2018 and had even served as a Minister.
Coming down heavily on Mr. Simha for his “loose and personal” remarks against Mr. Priyank Kharge, the activists demanded that the MP apologise to their leader and the Dalits of the State. Or else, they threatened to gherao him at public functions in the coming days.
Meanwhile, Mr. Simha also drew the ire of Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI) for referring to Muslims’ opposition to consumption of pork while he was condemning music composer Hamsalekha’s recent remarks.
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SDPI leader Afsar Kodlipet told reporters in Madikeri that Mr. Simha was repeatedly making “anti-constitutional and communally provocative” statements. He said there was no reason for Mr. Simha to make such remarks when Muslims had neither justified nor welcomed Mr. Hamsalekha’s statements.