Located in the heart of the city, the Cubbon Park police station has a traffic pile in front of it, even on a normal day. But on 19 February, the pile-up was unusually long.
Outside the police station, alleged Congress workers and henchmen of Congress MLA NA Haris were standing guard, while cops inside were formalising the arrest of Haris’s son, Mohammad Nalapad for attacking a 25-year-old.
As these men picked fights with the BJP, JD(S) workers protesting outside the station and the media covering the arrests, the pileup stretched as much as a kilometer. Inching through the traffic, commuters argued with these henchmen – some stared in anger and some cursed out loud.
This anger against the Congress MLA’s ‘spoiled brat’ could likely be the BJP’s trump card for winning Bengaluru in the upcoming elections.
BJP Finally Gets A Strong Cause in Bengaluru
The BJP has been able to polarise the voters in the coastal Karnataka, raising issues of attacks and murders of BJP workers in the state. Even within the Congress party, any seat won in the coastal districts is considered a bonus, as the BJP has managed to use the deaths effectively against the Congress.
In Bengaluru, which holds close to 12 percent of the state’s seat share, the Congress had an upper hand. In 2013, in Bengaluru urban, the Congress won 13 out of the 28 seats, while BJP managed victory in only 12 seats.
The BJP, had failed to come up with a strong campaign to increase its vote share in the state, but since a sitting MLA’s son was caught in the assault case, the BJP’s campaign against the Congress government has been gaining momentum in the city.
#TheGoonsofCongress Campaign
On Tuesday morning, the BJP began its political campaign against the Congress from the Karnataka assembly. Just hours after the BJP MLAs created chaos in assembly over the issues, the BJP received another gift. A congress party worker splashed petrol inside the government officer, after an officer refused to give him a fake property certificate.
Since the Nalapad incident, the BJP has claimed involvement of Congress workers in at least four different assault cases. Former Home Minister and senior BJP leader R Ashok argued that Bengaluru has become a city controlled by goons of the Congress party.
In a statement to the media, Ashok demanded that the government should release the CCTV footage of the attack to the public. In absence of the video, the BJP leaders ensured that they reiterated the injuries suffered by the 25-year-old, who was attacked by Nalapad. “Eight broken ribs and injuries to the victim’s nose and skull…” Ashok detailed.
‘The Spoiled Brat’ Narrative Effective Beyond Ideologies
On the side lines of an event, a senior BJP leader candidly told reporters that ‘a spoiled brat narrative’ is beyond ideologies. “No one likes a rich father’s arrogant son. The history of Nalapad violent past and misuse of power is now out in the public. There is an overwhelming reaction against this attack on social media and this gives us hope,” the leader said.
Meanwhile the Congress party is scrambling to recover from the blow. Instructions have been given to police officers to go hard on Nalapad. Cops adding attempt to murder case to the list of sections and demanding for 14 days judicial custody for Nalapad, are said to be Congress’s attempts to wash their hands off the controversy.
However, hooliganism of their party members is not helping them. “Since the Nalapad incident, several videos are doing rounds on social media, claiming to be attacks by the Congress workers and many of them are fakes. But this is helping BJP in enforcing their strategy,” said a cabinet minister of the Congress government.
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