BANGALORE: A discussion organized by Bangalore Political Action Committee (B.PAC) on Saturday for the candidates of Bangalore south Lok Sabha constituency had to be abandoned midway due to the ruckus by the Congress and BJP workers.
The event was organized at a college in south Bangalore. Congress nominee Nandan Nilekani, BJP MP HN Ananthkumar, AAP candidate Nina P Nayak and JD(S) candidate Ruth Manorama participated in the packed event.
The trouble began when Ananthkumar began attacking the UPA government, comparing it with AB Vajpayee government. Sloganeering began by the workers of both parties. The fervent appeal by the organizers and the candidates didn’t help. Frustrated, the organizers called it off by singing the national anthem.
B.PAC president Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw and secretary K Jairaj were moderating the debate. Shaw said: “It was a good experiment. It was to enable all voters to get to know candidates and empower them to make an informed choice on who should represent them. But, everybody saw what happened. It is sad to see the hooliganism. The instructions were very clear. But, politicians don’t follow rules and regulations.”
Later, she tweeted: “Citizens feedback on BPAC event was that the discussions were meaningful until Ananthkumar resorted to uncalled for political rhetoric. Citizens feedback is that all points made by all candidates were good but Ananthkumar’s Pakistan comment incited party workers.”