Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah found himself in an unusual situation on Friday when an elderly man obstructed the CM’s car to complain about parking woes in front of his residence. Stopping Siddaramaiah’s vehicle, the man demanded action over the parking issues.
Narottam, a retired government employee, argued with the police and complained about lack of ease of movement for him and his family members because of the parked vehicles of the CM’s guests near his house.
“What is this nonsense for the last five years? We are fed up. … I have to go to chief minister’s residence, find out about the owner of the vehicle to get it removed,” he said.
Congress apologises
Siddaramaiah is yet to move to his official residence on Bengaluru’s Kumarakrupa Road since he assumed office in May. He currently stays at his old official residence – the leader of the opposition’s bungalow – and is expected to move to the CM’s official residence in August.
The Congress party issued a statement seeking apology from Narottam. "We regret the inconvenience caused and seek an apology from the gentleman," the party’s statement read.
Bengaluru’s parking woes
Parking is one of the major issues affecting Bengaluru residents. Often times, bike riders park on footpaths and car owners struggle to find parking spots in the narrow and pot-holed roads of the city. In 2022, the Bengaluru traffic police registered about 1.4 lakh cases related to parking of vehicles on footpaths.
