Several activists have been upset with Bengaluru police over permissions being denied to multiple solidarity protests in support of Palestine. Bengaluru for Justice and Peace, a coalition of civil society groups, whose application to hold a protest against Israel’s attack on Palestine at Freedom Park on Saturday was turned down citing “law and order issues”, has now written an open letter to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah demanding “right to protest and peaceful assembly.”
However, Bengaluru City Police Commissioner B. Dayananda said it was the stand of the Karnataka State police not to allow any protests on the Israel-Palestine issue anywhere in the State, and permission for all protests relating to this issue was turned down accordingly.
Sources said that a call on this was taken following an evaluation of multiple inputs, as several Hindutva right wing groups had also sought permission to hold solidarity protest marches in favour of Israel even as many groups had sought permission to hold demonstrations in favour of Palestine.
