Senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders visited Hubballi on Friday to meet the family of a party woman worker who was allegedly stripped by police personnel earlier this week. The incident has triggered a major political storm in Karnataka, with the opposition BJP launching a fierce attack on the ruling Congress government over the state's law and order situation.
Political Leaders Condemn Police Action, Demand Probe
A delegation comprising Union Minister Pralhad Joshi, Leader of Opposition in the Assembly R Ashoka, Leader of Opposition in the Council Chalavadi Narayanaswamy, and MLA Mahesh Tenginkai met the aggrieved family. Following the meeting, they convened a discussion with senior police officials in the city.
Addressing the media, R Ashoka vehemently demanded a judicial inquiry into the strip-off case. He raised serious questions about the police's conduct, asking why a force of about 40 personnel was deemed necessary to arrest a single woman. "If there are cases against the woman, let the police investigate them. However, stripping off any woman is unacceptable," Ashoka stated.
He further challenged the police narrative, asking, "How can a woman strip off herself when there were about 40 police personnel? Was she a terrorist?" Ashoka accused the police of acting like the mythological character Dushyasana and demanded the immediate dismissal of all officers present at the scene if the woman was found to have been forced to disrobe.
BJP Accuses Congress of Law and Order Collapse
The BJP leaders used the incident to launch a broadside against the Congress administration. Ashoka claimed that the menace of rowdy sheeters has increased since the Congress came to power. He cited alarming statistics, asserting that 43,000 sexual harassment cases have been registered in the last 2.6 years.
"If commoners go to any police station, they are treated like offenders, while offenders are given royal treatment," he alleged. Ashoka also made a pointed accusation that the police who allegedly stripped the BJP worker later used their official vehicle, an Innova, to chauffeur a Congress corporator.
Echoing these sentiments, Chalavadi Narayanaswamy declared that law and order has completely collapsed in Karnataka. "All police stations have become Congress offices," he claimed during a protest. He added grimly, "Forget security, women are struggling to be alive because of misrule by Congress."
Protests and Counter-Allegations
In response to the incident, members of the BJP Mahila Morcha staged a dharna at Ambedkar Circle in Hubballi, demanding the suspension of the police personnel involved.
Meanwhile, the Congress party launched a counter-offensive. Vidyanagar Block Congress president Rajat Ullagaddimath released videos purportedly showing the same woman assaulting a man. He alleged that BJP MLA Mahesh Tenginkai was behind the entire episode to strengthen his own political standing.
MLA Tenginkai swiftly retorted, asking Congress leaders to reveal the date the video was shot. He suggested it was recorded when the woman was associated with the Congress party. "Congress should note that we are opposing only the incident of strip-off by police. If she is found guilty in other cases, let the law take its own course," he stated. He also challenged Congress to speak about corporator Suvarna Kallakuntla, who he claimed is convicted in a case.
The controversy has escalated into a full-blown political battle, with the core issue of the woman's treatment by police now entangled in a web of allegations and counter-allegations between Karnataka's two major parties.
