BJP Karnataka president B.Y. Vijayendra has opposed what he described as restrictive police directions against bursting firecrackers on public roads during Ganeshotsav idol immersion processions, while saying that unlawful activity must still be prevented.
Speaking to reporters on Sunday, Vijayendra said nobody would object to police action against illegal activities during the festival. However, he argued that statements suggesting firecrackers should not be burst even on public roads during idol immersion were unacceptable.
The issue places public-road use and festival processions at the centre of a law-and-order debate in Bengaluru and elsewhere in Karnataka. Ganeshotsav celebrations commonly involve public installations, processions, temporary traffic diversions and immersion-related movement, requiring coordination between organisers, police, civic authorities and residents. The material available does not specify the police officer who issued the reported statement, the locations covered, or whether the direction was issued through a formal order.
Vijayendra said entering a mosque and bursting firecrackers inside it would be illegal and should not be permitted. He nevertheless described extending that reasoning to a blanket restriction on firecrackers on public roads as excessive. His comments were framed as opposition to the scope and tone of the reported police direction rather than as a rejection of restrictions on unlawful conduct.
He also urged the home minister and senior police officials to examine the police officer’s statement. Vijayendra said action should be taken against the officer if it was established that the remarks had exceeded legal limits or had been made in a threatening manner. No response from the Karnataka government, home department or police leadership was included in the report.
The BJP state president further said the government should not take steps that test the patience of Hindu communities or create avoidable obstacles to religious observances. He warned that if restrictions, threats or unnecessary impediments led to a deterioration in the law-and-order situation, the Congress-led government and the home minister would be responsible.
For city administrations, the immediate administrative question is how festival permissions, traffic management, public safety and noise or fire-safety rules will be applied during immersion events. The report does not establish whether the reported direction was a statewide instruction, a local police advisory or a comment referring to specific sensitive locations. That distinction will determine the practical effect on organisers and residents.
Vijayendra said the BJP would instruct its workers not to violate the law, while continuing to oppose what he considers restrictions on the celebration itself. The next clarification is expected from the home department or senior police officials on the scope and legal basis of the reported direction.
