Row erupts over free bus ride to VHP convention attendees

Mangaluru: Obliging to a request put forth by Mangaluru South MLA D. Vedavyasa Kamath, Dakshina Kannada Bus Owners’ Association had agreed to offer free ride to those attending the Vishwa Hindu Parishad’s Janagraha convention to be held on November 25  in the city.

However, the gesture seems to have stoked a row with DYFI state President Muneer Katipalla alleging that offering free bus rides to those attending the event aimed at enhancing communal tension is condemnable

Stating that the BJP Parivar resorts to vote-bank politics as elections approach, Muneer said that the event may only fuel communal tension in the area. Further, he said that bus services are meant for people belonging to all religions and castes and asked people to question the intent of offering ticketless travel to the attendees.

“Since commuters would have been affected if buses were exclusively given for the convention the association had decided to offer free rides to the attendees. Similar gesture has been extended to many political, religious and other conventions held in the past,” said association president Dilraj Alva

Further he mentioned that the move could have been viewed as one fostering communal amity especially since bus owners do not come from one religion only.

Putting forth his thoughts Aziz Parthipady, former president of the association said that the association was not communally biased and earlier too the association had offered free rides to participants of the Hindu Samajotsava programmes, respecting the sentiments of the majority community.

Meanwhile, MLC Harish Kumar too reiterated that the choice of offering free rides was left to the bus owners.