Bengaluru: On the day that the Karnataka High Court junked pleas filed by three individuals, including former Mysuru-Kodagu MP Prathap Simha, seeking to restrain International Booker Prize winner Banu Mushtaq from inaugurating Dasara, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Monday lashed out at Prathap Simha, calling him a ‘fool’ for opposing Banu Mushtaq’s selection.

Speaking after inaugurating the International Day of Democracy organised at Vidhana Soudha yesterday, Siddaramaiah said that India functions under a secular system and there is no meaning or substance in opposing the Naada Habba Dasara inauguration by International Booker Prize winner Banu Mushtaq.

“If a person who was a Lok Sabha MP earlier does not know what the Constitution is, then the people must be alert about such fools. Even after decades of independence, some vested interests continue to behave communally and mislead the public,” Siddaramaiah said.

“It is regrettable that the tribe of such leaders is growing these days. It is even more unfortunate that those who understand harmony and co-existence are the very ones misleading people. Though such leaders are free to play politics, they should not devote their time in misleading the very people they represent,” the CM said, adding that society must condemn such vested interests.