MYSORE: Former Deputy Chief Minister Siddaramaiah filed his nomination papers for the byelection to the Assembly from Chamundeshwari constituency as a Congress candidate on Friday accompanied by a mammoth procession, comprising a large number of party workers, folk troupes and tableaux.

After offering puja to Goddess Chamundeshwari atop the Chamundi Hills, Mr. Siddaramaiah set out from Kote Anjaneyaswamy Temple at North Gate of Mysore Palace in a decorated vehicle. He was flanked by former Director General of Police L. Revanasiddaiah, youth wing president of AHINDA Appanna, former Minister D.B. Chandre Gowda, Mysore City Congress President C. Dase Gowda and actor Jaggesh.

The procession wound through K.R. Circle, D. Devaraj Urs Road, Hotel Metropole Circle and Hunsur Road.

Folk troupes performed throughout the procession route. It took almost two hours for Mr. Siddaramaiah to reach the Karnataka Institute of Agricultural Marketing where he submitted his nomination papers to Assistant Commissioner Chikkathammaiah at 1.30 p.m.

A few party activists tonsured their heads and had the imprint of the Congress party's symbol. Some activists had their bodies painted with the colours of the Congress flag. Tableaux carrying artistes dressed as Basaveshwara, Rani Kittur Chennamma and Tipu Sultan featured in the procession.

The procession disrupted traffic in the city. D. Devaraj Urs Road, Sayyaji Rao Road and Hunsur Road were kept out of bounds for traffic.

Tension

Earlier in the morning, tension prevailed at K.R. Circle when an altercation broke out between Congress activists led by MLA M.K. Somashekar and the police over the removal of party banners and posters by Mysore City Corporation personnel.

When corporation personnel started removing the posters and other publicity material on the grounds that they were blocking the view of Nalwadi Krishnaraja Wadiyar's statue, Congress activists arrived there and took them to task. The corporation personnel, however, removed four posters.

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