Ashok accuses Congress govt. of being reluctant to take action against terrorists

Referring to the recent bomb blast at Rameshwaram Cafe in Bengaluru, Leader of Opposition in the Assembly R. Ashok has said that terror activities in the State have been on the rise after the Congress assumed power but the government is reluctant to take stringent action against terrorists.

“The State government is not ready to take stringent action against terrorists responsible for the Rameshwaram Cafe blast and those who raised pro-Pakistan slogan in the Vidhana Soudha. Under Congress rule, Hindutva activists have been banished from Udupi and Mangaluru. In some places, Hindutva activists have been killed. In Kalaburagi, two BJP leaders have been murdered,” he said, during his brief interaction with media representatives in Kalaburagi on Monday.

Asserting his party’s stand on the sloganeering in the Vidhana Soudha, Mr. Ashok asked the government to book a case against a private agency that confirmed pro-Pakistan sloganeering in the Vidhana Soudha if its report is proved to be incorrect by the Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL).

When asked about seat sharing between BJP and Janata Dal(S) for the Lok Sabha elections, Mr. Ashok said that the final decision will be taken shortly.

Leader of Opposition in the Assembly R. Ashok meeting the family members of slain BJP leader Mahanthappa Alure at the latter’s residence in Sarsamba village of Aland taluk on Monday. (Source: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT)

“Since Janata Dal(S) leader H.D. Kumaraswamy was not well, he could not go to Delhi to finalise seat sharing. Janata Dal(S) supremo H.D. Deve Gowda will go to Delhi and finalise it,” he said.

To a question on the candidate for the Mandya Lok Sabha constituency, Mr. Ashok said his party did not have any objection to Sumalatha, Lok Sabha member from the constituency, contesting the election as an Independent candidate even this time. “We will simply work for the candidate finalised by the party’s high command,” he said.

Member of Legislative Council Sunil Vallyapure, Member of Legislative Assembly Basavaraj Mattimadu, the former MLA Dattatreya Patil Revoor and BJP’s Kalaburagi Rural Unit president Shivaraj Patil Raddewadagi were present.

Mr. Ashok later went to Sarsamba village in Aland taluk and met the family of Mahanthappa Alure, BJP leader who was recently murdered.