The Ballari district unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) staged a protest demonstration in Ballari on Wednesday condemning the “pro-Pakistan” slogans raised by a Congress activist in the Vidhana Soudha in Bengaluru on Tuesday after Congress candidate Syed Nasir Hussain was on Tuesday elected to the Rajya Sabha.
BJP workers gathered at Haviyappa Circle and formed a human chain raising slogans against the Congress and criticising the party for its “pro-Pakistani” tendencies.
The agitating activists then marched to the office of Mr. Hussain on the premises of Ballari Urban Development Authority and made an attempt to lay a siege to it.
Police personnel, however, stopped the protesters who tried to barge into the office of Mr. Hussain. The protesters somehow managed to destroy Mr. Hussain’s nameplate.
There was an exchange of heated arguments between the agitating BJP workers and the police that created a tense atmosphere for a while. The police, however, brought the situation under control.
The agitating activists also raised slogans against the Congress government in the State and continued to demand the removal of Mr. Hussain, who, they said, was anti-national, from office if he refused to tender his resignation voluntarily.
“The Congress activists celebrated the election of Mr. Hussain to the Rajya Sabha by raising the slogan ‘Pakistan Zindabad’ in the Vidhana Soudha in Bengaluru. It shows how the Congress and its activists are working against India. We strongly believe that the followers of Mr. Hussain who raised the ‘pro-Pakistan’ slogan are terrorists. They should be arrested immediately. And, investigation should be initiated,” a BJP leader said during the protest.
There was heavy police deployment around Mr. Hussain’s office to prevent any untoward incident.