Karnataka’s education minister is in fresh controversy after an online interaction with students during a programme launch went awry, leading to him demanding action to be taken against them.
What Did The Minister Say?
The incident took place on 20th November, Wednesday when the Karnataka government launched an ambitious programme that would provide free online coaching to 25,000 students from the state at the Vidhana Soudha.
This included government pre-degree college students who would be sitting for exams such as the CET, JEE, and NEET. During the launch, Karnataka Education Minister Madhu Bangarappa was reportedly engaging with students through an online meeting.
It was then that an unseen student was heard saying that the minister “doesn’t know Kannada”.
While initially, the education minister seemed calm about the remark, soon that changed with him angrily speaking about how action should be taken against whoever said the comment.
According to the viral videos about the incident, Education Minister Madhu Bangarappa can be heard saying “Who’s saying that? Am I speaking in Urdu now? Those people on TV will say put that and run it. Who said that I don’t know Kannada? Record it, take action against them. That was very stupid. Who are the teachers? This has to be taken very seriously. I will not be silent and let it go.”
The minister then directed senior education officials, present during the event, including Ritesh Kumar, Principal Secretary for School Education, and Sindhu Roopesh, PU Department Director, to make sure the issue was addressed.
The video was posted by many different users with @karnatakaportf writing “What a shame! How can a person like this be appointed as the Education Minister of the state? A school student openly stated that Karnataka’s Education Minister, Madhu Bangarappa, does not speak Kannada fluently — a fact that has gained attention.
Instead of addressing the concern, the minister reportedly directed officials to take serious action against the student and the teachers involved. This incident raises serious questions about the state of freedom of expression under the Congress government.
On one hand, they claim to uphold the values of the Constitution and promote freedom of speech, while on the other hand, actions like these suppress honest opinions, especially from students. Such behavior is not only contradictory but also undermines the democratic values that the government claims to protect.”
What a shame! How can a person like this be appointed as the Education Minister of the state? A school student openly stated that Karnataka's Education Minister, Madhu Bangarappa, does not speak Kannada fluently — a fact that has gained attention. Instead of addressing the… pic.twitter.com/eH4293VfQi
— Karnataka Portfolio (@karnatakaportf) November 20, 2024
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The BJP instantly pounced on the matter with several ministers calling out Bangarappa for overreacting.
BJP leader Basanagouda R Patil Yatnal in an X/Twitter post wrote “It is known to the state that the education minister does not speak Kannada. The fact that the minister told in front of the media to take action against a student for telling a minister that he does not speak Kannada shows how dishonest he is.”
He added that “constructive criticism from both students and journalists should be accepted.”
BJP MLA CN Ashwath Narayan also commented “He is behaving as if he’s a commander in the military. He is in public life and should take this as a challenge. I wish no action should be taken against that student.”
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Sources: Times of India, Hindustan Times, India Today
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This post is tagged under: Madhu Bangarappa, Madhu Bangarappa minister, Madhu Bangarappa kannada, Madhu Bangarappa news, Madhu Bangarappa education minister, Madhu Bangarappa kannada speech, education minister, Karnataka education minister, Karnataka
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