BENGALURU: An executive committee meeting called by the Karnataka Youth Congress Committee to discuss the planned protest against the recent NEET question paper leak and subsequent cancellation of the examination saw dramatic scenes after party workers nearly came to blows.
The confrontation reportedly involved the supporters of Karnataka Youth Congress president HS Manjunath Gowda and vice-president Deepika Reddy.
The clash broke out after Reddy and her followers were allegedly not allowed to speak at the meeting.
The meeting was called by Indian Youth Congress national secretary Nigam Bhandari to discuss the protest planned against the cancellation of NEET UG following the paper leak.
Speaking to reporters, HS Manjunath Gowda said there are protocols that need to be followed during executive committee meetings. “Some members were kept on hold, they are not suspended. It means some work was given to them, which they did not execute. There was some confusion, but no commotion,” he said, downplaying the altercation.
He further added that a few members were also not involving themselves in party activities, and notices were issued to them. “They, however, did not reply,” he claimed.
When media persons pointed out a video that showed the members creating chaos, Manjunath said that the Block Congress Committee presidents will verify it and take action.
“The details will be shared with KPCC president DK Shivakumar. AICC president Mallikarjun Kharge will be informed about this. They will decide on the action that needs to be taken,” he said.
Defending the act, Manjunath said the youth these days are more aggressive, and that is why in the video it looks like there was chaos. “There is no personal issue here. It was about the organisation. We will sit and discuss,” he said.
Meanwhile, Deepika Reddy said she was elected to the post of KPCC youth wing vice-president by getting over 3 lakh votes. “Manjunath Gowda, who had earlier served as the vice-president in the previous committee, was troubling us.
We were not allowed to raise our voice on any platforms. They were making allegations that we were not working and kept us on hold. In the state executive committee meeting, we tried to raise this issue and wanted Nigam Bhandari to listen to the grievances... some of them spoke rudely and were irked by this, some of the members tried to stop them. This problem will be resolved by CM Siddaramaiah and KPCC president DK Shivakumar,” she added.
