Karnataka BJP postpones protest against state govt

Bengaluru, Jun 12 (PTI) Karnataka BJP on Thursday announced that it has postponed its mega protest against the state government in Bengaluru on June 13 in connection with the recent stampede incident that killed 11 people, following the Air India plane crash near Ahmedabad airport.

The protest was aimed at holding the state government and Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and his deputy D K Shivakumar responsible for the June 4 incident and to demand their resignation. The party leaders had also planned to lay a siege to the CM's residence.

"The BJP had planned a mega protest at Bengaluru's Freedom Park against the state government for its lack of preparedness, leading to the death of 11 people due to the stampede during the RCB team's IPL victory celebrations. But following the Air India plane crash in Gujarat this afternoon killing a number of people, we have decided to postpone the protest," BJP MLC N Ravikumar said.

In a video statement, he said, "All party workers who were to participate in the protest are hereby informed of the postponement." He did not share any details about the new date for the protest.

State BJP President B Y Vijayendra, later expressing grief over the plane crash incident in a statement said, "In the wake of this national disaster, the BJP's planned protest against the state government at Freedom Park in Bengaluru tomorrow (13-6-2025) has been postponed." A London-bound Air India plane carrying 242 passengers and crew crashed in a crowded residential area minutes after taking off from the Ahmedabad airport on Thursday. Many people were feared killed. PTI KSU KH