Bengaluru woke up on Monday to a fresh round of political posters, banners and sharp words, as the Congress-BJP poster war in Karnataka widened over the weekend. What began as a war of words between Union Minister HD Kumaraswamy and Home Minister Priyank Kharge has now spilled onto the streets of the state capital, with both sides pasting posters and daring each other to take the fight further.
The latest escalation came on Sunday, when Youth Congress workers expanded their poster campaign to target Kumaraswamy directly. Posters and banners went up overnight on Saturday at Janata Dal (Secular) and BJP offices and at prominent junctions across Bengaluru. Civic authorities removed some of them, but several remained in place at busy locations.
What the posters said
The posters carried a pointed message in Kannada: “Haudu, Naanu Balitha Dalita, Sumaranna”, which translates to “Yes, I am an empowered Dalit, Sumaranna”. The line was a direct answer to Kumaraswamy, who had described Priyank Kharge as a “Balitha Dalita”, or privileged Dalit.
Another poster took the counterattack further. “I grew up because of the Constitution and the Congress, not because of the potatoes from your house,” it read, in an apparent reference to Kumaraswamy’s earlier remarks about the Kharge family.
The Karnataka Pradesh Youth Congress also held a banner and poster campaign at Mehkri Circle at 5.30 pm on Sunday, led by its state president HS Manjunath Gowda, to protest what it called Kumaraswamy’s anti-Dalit remarks and provocative statements by BJP MLC and Leader of Opposition in the Legislative Council Chalavadi Narayanaswamy.
Members of the National Students Union of India (NSUI), the Congress student wing, put up posters against Narayanaswamy on Sunday as well, over his remarks against Priyank Kharge.
How the row began
The bitterness between Kumaraswamy and Priyank Kharge has been building for weeks. It flared up over a purported sting video involving former chief minister Siddaramaiah, which was aired by local television channels. Kumaraswamy accused Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar of orchestrating the alleged sting, a charge Shivakumar has denied.
During the exchange, Kumaraswamy questioned how Priyank Kharge and his father, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, could keep contesting elections from constituencies reserved for Scheduled Castes, and referred to Priyank as a privileged Dalit. On October 17, Congress workers and Dalit organisations staged a protest at Sanjaya Circle in Mandya, blocking the old Bengaluru-Mysuru highway and forming a human chain.
A day later, Priyank Kharge hit back at a press conference in Kalaburagi. “If my wearing a suit is intolerable to Kumaraswamy, I will get 10 suits stitched and wear them,” he said, accusing the Union Minister of being unable to accept a Dalit moving ahead in politics.
The poster war so far
The poster war itself began a few days ago, when Youth Congress workers targeted state BJP president BY Vijayendra over his “RTGS Chor” and “RTGS Villain” remarks. Posters first appeared near the residences of Vijayendra and his father, former chief minister BS Yediyurappa, in Bengaluru.
With Sunday’s escalation, the campaign has come full circle, with the Congress now aiming its posters at Kumaraswamy and Narayanaswamy while the BJP responds with counterattacks of its own.
BJP hits back
State BJP president BY Vijayendra dismissed the campaign as a waste of time. “Let Priyank Kharge or any minister in the Cabinet hold a press conference and explain their achievements. Instead, they are wasting time on such activities in the name of poster wars,” he said.
Narayanaswamy, responding to Priyank Kharge’s use of the term “Halliguggu”, meaning a rustic or village bumpkin, said, “Yes, I am a Halliguggu. But didn’t your father also come from a village? Where did Mallikarjun Kharge come from?” He also accused the Congress of political theatrics over its “Gandhi’s children” slogans.
What happens next
Neither side looks ready to back down. The Congress sees the poster campaign as a way to turn Kumaraswamy’s remark into a larger question about respect for Dalit leaders, while the BJP argues that the ruling party is hiding its failures behind street-level theatrics.
The Karnataka BJP has separately announced a statewide protest against the Congress government over rising prices, with a demonstration planned at Freedom Park in Bengaluru on November 11. With that protest coming two days after the latest poster escalation, the political temperature in the state is only set to rise.
FAQs
What triggered the Karnataka poster war?
It began when Youth Congress workers targeted BJP state president BY Vijayendra over his “RTGS Chor” and “RTGS Villain” remarks, and widened on Sunday when the campaign turned on HD Kumaraswamy over his remark about Priyank Kharge.
What does “Balitha Dalita” mean?
It means a privileged Dalit. Kumaraswamy used the term for Priyank Kharge while questioning how he and his father Mallikarjun Kharge keep contesting from reserved constituencies. The Congress has turned the phrase into a counter-slogan on its posters.
Who is Priyank Kharge?
Priyank Kharge is Karnataka’s Home Minister and IT-BT Minister, and the son of Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge.
What happened at Mehkri Circle on Sunday?
The Karnataka Pradesh Youth Congress held a banner and poster campaign at Mehkri Circle in Bengaluru at 5.30 pm on Sunday, led by state president HS Manjunath Gowda.
Has any complaint been filed over the posters?
Yes, BJP leaders lodged a complaint at the Doddapete police station in Shivamogga after Youth Congress workers pasted posters outside Vijayendra’s residence and the BJP district office there.
