BENGALURU: BJYM president and BJP MP Tejasvi Surya was detained by police on Monday during protests in Bengaluru against the proposed hike in Namma Metro fares, where demonstrators carried what were described as “empty trunks” to symbolise the burden on commuters.
He was later released after a brief detention, police confirmed.
Surya accused the Karnataka government of suppressing dissent instead of addressing public concerns.
He said, “It is shameful that instead of providing better roads, infrastructure and amenities, the state government is forcing and detaining. We are asking for affordable public transport.”
The BJP MP also targeted chief minister Siddaramaiah, holding him responsible for the proposed fare hike amid an ongoing blame game between the Congress-led state government and the Centre over who has authority over metro fares.
Sharing a year-old social media post by Siddaramaiah directing a reduction in metro fares, Surya questioned the chief minister’s current stand that he lacks the authority to increase fares.
“Where did CM get the authority to direct the reduction or revision of fares last time? If he didn't have authority, like he claims now, to fix or increase the price, where did he get authority to reduce or revise the price? The answer to your question lies there. Cut the drama,” Surya wrote on X on Sunday.
Surya’s remarks came after the Karnataka Congress accused the BJP and the Centre of being responsible for the fare hike.
In a post on X, the party said, “The BJP MPs' 'Emergency Exit' strategy on Namma Metro fares is pure hypocrisy. They claimed the Union Government had no role in the hike, yet now they're pleading with Delhi to 'temporarily hold' it. If they don't have the power to set the price, how do they suddenly have the power to pause it? Shameless hypocrisy.”
Earlier, Surya alleged that the Karnataka government had repeatedly urged the Fare Fixation Committee to increase metro fares. He said the state had proposed a five per cent increase, warning that it would burden commuters, and called for periodic fare revisions in line with legal requirements.
Deputy chief minister DK Shivakumar, however, maintained that he had not been consulted on the fare hike. He said the committee responsible for fixing metro fares was headed by a Union Secretary.
Meanwhile, Karnataka minister Dinesh Gundu Rao accused the BJP of politicising the issue, saying Siddaramaiah had already written to the Centre, which has an equal stake in Bengaluru Metro Rail Corporation Limited, seeking that fares not be increased.
“Unnecessarily the BJP people want to make politics out of everything. The metro is run by the State and Central Govt and it is a separate corporation. CM has already written to the Government of India to not increase the fare. Now, Tejasvi Surya is saying that they are not going to increase, so let there be an official order, then we will see,” Rao told reporters.
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