BJP Mahila Morcha protests Karnataka milk price hike in Bengaluru
Union Minister Shobha Karandlaje and other leaders were detained after demonstrators attempted to march against the recent Nandini milk price increase.
The BJP Mahila Morcha staged a protest at Bengaluru's Freedom Park on Monday to demand a rollback of the Nandini milk price hike implemented by the Congress government. According to reports from Urban Acres, Deccan Chronicle, and ThePrint, police detained Union Minister Shobha Karandlaje and other leaders in buses after protesters attempted to march with milk cans and placards.
The Karnataka Cabinet decided on Thursday to increase Nandini milk prices by Rs 8 per litre, effective November 1. Of this, Rs 7 is intended for farmers and Re 1 for the Karnataka Milk Federation (KMF). Following this, KMF raised curd prices by Rs 14 per litre and increased some special and toned milk varieties by up to Rs 12.
Addressing the gathering, Karandlaje criticised the state government's management of essential commodity costs. She stated that the price rise would be hard for low-income groups to manage, including taxi and autorickshaw drivers, hotel workers, and those running roadside businesses.
Karandlaje also alleged that the government's drought relief of Rs 2,500 per acre for farmers included 17 to 18 conditions. She further claimed that Rs 5,000 crore linked to the Gruha Lakshmi scheme had not been accounted for and that fund shortages had impacted bus operations in the Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC).
Former MLC Bharathi Shetty told the protesters that the government should follow its manifesto by providing milk incentives instead of passing costs to consumers. The BJP Mahila Morcha stated it plans to hold similar protests at district, mandal, and ward levels across Karnataka.