BENGALURU: Congress has transformed egg into a symbol of protest with party workers across the state hitting the streets to protest against eggs being flung at former chief minister Siddaramaiah’s car in Kodagu on Thursday. In Mandya, agitators used boiled eggs, while Youth Congress members in Bengaluru said they will follow the principles of Mahatma Gandhi, turn the other cheek and send eggs to all ruling BJP ministers. They also protested at the War Memorial off Brigade Road on Friday evening.
Former MP Ugrappa mocked at BJP, saying, “Is not BJP a party of vegetarians? Why are they throwing eggs which are considered non-vegetarian?’’ Even as the protest turned shrill, former Speaker and Virajpet-Kodagu MLA KG Bopaiah tried to distance BJP from the issue, saying those who threw eggs were not from BJP. But after information came out that MLA Appachu Ranjan had a hand in the release of the protesters in Kodagu, an angry Congress MLA Byrati Suresh said, “We will throw rotten eggs at Appachu Ranjan.”
The “egg attack” could be a turning point in state politics, experts said. Siddaramaiah, whose support had dwindled among his own Kuruba and Ahinda voters with ratings going down from ten on ten to as low as five on ten, has suddenly seen a upsurge of support, they added. Kuruba and Ahinda constituents took to social media sites to express their support to Siddaramaiah.
Many suggested they are willing to go to Kodagu to express their anger and protest at the very same spot where protesters threw the egg at the leader’s vehicle and hold a convention. Talk about political oology, which is the study of collecting eggs. In the case of Siddaramaih, he seems to be collecting all the right eggs, just months before the Assembly elections.