Bengaluru, 24 Feb

Protests by job aspirants escalated in Dharwad on Tuesday, with demonstrators demanding the immediate filling of 2.84 lakh vacant government posts.

As several agitators were taken into preventive custody, the unified Opposition of the BJP and JD(S) seized the moment, supporting the protest and demanding that the vacancies be addressed.

With tensions rising, the ruling Congress, including Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar, and the Opposition blamed each other for the delay in filling government posts.

A large number of aspirants gathered at the protest site, raising slogans and expressing anger over recruitment delays. They staged a massive rally, carrying placards, banners, and posters, and even burnt effigies of Karnataka ministers.

As the situation turned tense, police were deployed to maintain law and order. Several protesters were later taken into custody after the demonstration reportedly got out of control.

“The situation escalated, and preventive action was taken to bring it under control,” a senior police officer said.

A protester said the agitation would continue until the vacant posts are filled. Another warned that if demands were not met, students might lay siege to the Vidhana Soudha.

“We don’t want a situation like Nepal or Bangladesh, but the government should take note of our demands,” he said.

Among those detained was All Karnataka State Students’ Association (AKSSA) president R Kanthakumar, who was taken into custody along with other demonstrators.

Police blamed him for the protest "spiralling out of control".

Addressing job aspirants in Kalaburagi on Monday, Kanthakumar had urged them to join the Dharwad protest.

“There are 2.84 lakh posts across 43 departments lying vacant. The Congress had promised to fill one lakh jobs within a year of coming to power, but in three years, not even 5,000 posts have been filled,” he said.

The BJP also extended support to the protests. Leader of Opposition in the Karnataka Assembly R Ashoka, who reached Dharwad, said over 2.5 lakh posts remain vacant.

“It’s been more than six months since the Finance Department issued orders to fill 65,000 posts, but not a single interview call has been issued. This is an anti-youth government,” he claimed.

Responding to the BJP’s support, Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar said, “Why didn’t the BJP fill the vacancies? We are addressing them. Realising the employment problem, we are providing Rs 3,000 under the Yuva Nidhi scheme for unemployed graduates and inviting applications.”

Shivakumar added that details regarding vacancies in his department have been shared with the Karnataka Public Service Commission (KPSC).

The CM blamed the previous BJP government for the backlog of vacancies. In a statement, Siddaramaiah said that when Congress assumed office in 2023, over 2.64 lakh government posts were vacant.

“The backlog resulted from prolonged inaction under the previous BJP government, which failed to initiate timely recruitment or create a structured roadmap,” he said.

He accused BJP leaders of "misleading students for political gains" and said recruitment irregularities and alleged corruption between 2019 and 2023 had eroded trust in the system, leading to the current crisis.

The Opposition slammed the Congress government. State BJP president B Y Vijayendra charged that the government has not filled even a single post and highlighted Rahul Gandhi’s pre-election promise to fill 2.5 lakh vacancies. He also cited the Congress manifesto, which pledged to fill approved vacancies within one year.

Union Minister and JD(S) second-in-command HD Kumaraswamy criticised the government for failing to fill posts in a timely manner, forcing youths to protest. “My only appeal to the youth is this: let your protest remain peaceful — I stand with you,” he said in a social media post.