The Bharatiya Janata Party on Monday accused the Congress government in Karnataka of providing VVIP facilities to an alleged ISIS recruiter and other inmates in state jails, and demanded the immediate resignation of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Home Minister G Parameshwara. This accusation followed the surfacing of undated videos on social media purportedly showing prison inmates using mobile phones, watching television, and even partying inside the prison premises.
Addressing a press conference at the BJP headquarters, party national spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla displayed video footage that allegedly showed ISIS recruiter Juhad Hameed Shakeel Manna using a mobile phone inside the jail. He went on to accuse the Congress of giving patronage to the alleged terrorist.
"We nab terrorists and when they are sent to jail, the Congress provides VVIP facilities so that they can freely execute their terror plans and recruit more people," he charged.
Poonawalla contrasted this with the National Democratic Alliance government's approach, said, "On the one hand, the country's security agencies and the government are seriously engaged in foiling terrorists' nefarious plan and arresting them, while on the other hand, biryani, mobile phone, and VVIP service is being provided to terrorists in a Karnataka jail," adding that the Congress has always been "soft on terror."
The BJP spokesperson accused the Congress of protecting jailed terrorists and other inmates, demanding that Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and state Home Minister Parameshwara immediately resign to allow an independent probe into the matter. He also challenged Congress central leader Rahul Gandhi, asking, "Will you seek accountability from the Karnataka Chief Minister and Home Minister Parameshwara, and demand their resignation?"
The Karnataka Home Minister, G Parameshwara, on Monday said the state government has taken serious note of reports about illegal activities in state prisons and warned that such lapses will not be tolerated.
Parameshwara's statement came amid public outrage following recent media reports, which included videos purportedly showing inmates having access to banned items like ganja (cannabis), liquor, mobile phones, and television inside their barracks at Bengaluru Central Prison. “The media has reported illegal activities in the jails of the state. We have taken it very seriously. The government will not tolerate it at any cost," he told reporters ahead of a review meeting. Holding the prison authorities accountable, Parameshwara said, "All the officers concerned and the head of the prisons are responsible... it is their duty to manage it properly."
Poonawalla argued that such empty talk from the Minister cannot address the "deteriorating" law-and-order situation and a series of "corruption" cases in Karnataka under the Congress rule. He reiterated that both Siddaramaiah and Parameshwara must resign to allow an impartial and independent probe into the matter.
"Because, without their nexus — the Congress' active support and the state government's collusion — terrorists, rapists, and criminals cannot get VVIP service and treatment inside prison," Poonawalla concluded.
Also read: Centre neglects Kannada, imposes Hindi: CM Siddaramaiah
Follow us
