Pic: BJP GBCMC members and party workers tried to picket CMC office in Gadag on Tuesday and staged a dharna demanding adequate drinking water supply to Gadag and BetgeriGadag: BJP members of the Gadag-Betgeri City Municipal Council (GBCMC) and other party functionaries held a protest demanding adequate drinking water for the twin cities of Gadag-Betageri on Tuesday.They carried empty pots in a rally from Mahatma Gandhi Circle to the CMC office, expressing anger and shouting slogans against district minister HK Patil. As they tried to enter the CMC premises, the police stopped them, leading to a scuffle. The protest continued with a sit-in in front of the CMC gate.When Gadag deputy commissioner CN Sreedhara arrived at the protest site and held a meeting to discuss resolving the issue, protesters said that the water problem in Gadag and Betgeri persisted for the past 50 years. Despite daily complaints from the public to respective councillors, no solution seems to be in sight. An argument took place as the DC had invited only five members to the meeting to resolve the drinking water issue. Protesters said five was not enough and pressed to invite all BJP CMC members to the meeting. However, the DC insisted they should not dictate terms. This angered the protesters, who retorted, “We are not dictators; we are public representatives. If we come to discuss the water issue, there is none to listen to our problems.” MLC SV Sankanur, BJP district president Raju Kuradagi and other functionaries were present on the occasion.
