Kuruba community protests removal of Siddaramaiah statue in Kalaburagi, demands reinstallation

Kalaburagi: Members of the Kuruba community and supporters of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah held a protest rally in Kalaburagi on Tuesday against the removal of a statue of the leader that had been installed near the High Court on Afzalpur Ring Road.

According to officials, the statue was put up by unidentified persons on the night of September 16 and was removed by Kalaburagi City Corporation staff on September 17, the day Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar visited the city.

Community leaders demanded that the statue be reinstalled and that the officials who ordered its removal be suspended. They had earlier set September 23 as the deadline for reinstallation and announced the protest after the demand was not met.

On Tuesday, members of the community from across Kalaburagi district gathered near the Sangolli Rayanna statue close to the city bus stand in the market area. Carrying yellow flags and placards in support of Siddaramaiah and raising slogans against the city corporation authorities, they marched towards Jagat Circle and later proceeded to the Deputy Commissioner's office. The procession was accompanied by Dollu Kunitha and Thamate performances, traditional drumming forms of the region.

The protesters said Siddaramaiah, a leader associated with the AHINDA platform — a Kannada acronym standing for minorities, backward classes and Dalits — had introduced several welfare programmes aimed at the uplift of socially and economically disadvantaged sections during his tenure as Chief Minister. They said he had consistently championed the cause of backward communities, Dalits, minorities and other disadvantaged groups through his political career, and highlighted his emphasis on welfare-oriented governance and social justice.

They said these programmes had benefited large sections of people who had historically remained economically and socially marginalised, and that the statue was intended to honour his contribution to their welfare. The agitators maintained that the statue should be restored and that responsibility should be fixed on the officials who ordered its removal.

A minor altercation was reported outside the Deputy Commissioner's office after police personnel closed the main gate of the Mini Vidhana Soudha, preventing the protesters from entering the premises. There were no immediate reports of injuries or arrests.

Context

Under Karnataka's municipal rules, erecting a statue or a permanent structure on public land generally requires prior permission from the local authority. It was not immediately clear who installed the statue, on whose behalf it was put up, or whether any permission had been sought. Kalaburagi City Corporation officials have not publicly explained the reasons for the removal, and no official statement on the community's demand for reinstallation has been issued so far.

The episode has drawn attention to the wider question of how local bodies decide what may be installed on roadsides and near public buildings, and how such decisions are communicated to residents. Authorities have not announced a timeline for a decision on the protesters' demand, and community leaders have said they will decide on their next course of action after consulting their members.