BENGALURU: Alleging that Enforcement Directorate (ED) action against PWD Minister Satish Jarkiholi and his family members was politically motivated, leaders of the ST Nayaka community, mostly associated with the Congress, decided to hold a massive rally in support of the minister.
At a meeting at Gandhi Bhavan on Kumara Krupa Road here on Thursday, the leaders discussed holding the rally either in Davanagere or Chitradurga, with plans to mobilise lakhs of members of the Valmiki community.
Around 300 people, including KPCC ST wing leader Vijay Nayak, women’s wing general secretary Subha Venugopal, legal department working chairman and advocate Diwakar Narayanaswamy, who is also a member of the State SC/ST Commission, attended the meeting.
The meeting comes a day after AICC general secretary and Karnataka in-charge Randeep Singh Surjewala alleged that the ED had targeted Jarkiholi because he is a prominent ST Nayaka leader and represents underprivileged communities. Surjewala claimed that BJP leaders in Karnataka were seeking action against him because of his prominence among the ST community.
ST Nayaka leaders at Thursday’s meeting also discussed the political implications of the ED searches and expressed concern over what they described as attempts to target prominent leaders from the community.