A day after the murder case of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) youth leader, Praveen Nettaru, was announced to be handed over to the National Investigation Agency (NIA), the saffron party’s youth wing – Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) on Saturday, 30 July, held protests in front of Karnataka Home Minister Araga Jnanendra's residence in Bengaluru.
Over 50 protestors tried to barge inside the home minister's residence and were subsequently detained by police. Home Minister Jnanendra was reportedly not at home at the time.
Three separate murders have raised communal tension in the coastal state.
While Praveen Nettaru, 32, was killed on 26 July in Dakshina Kannada district, a man named Fazil, 23, was stabbed to death by masked attackers in Mangaluru on Thursday evening, 28 July, during Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai’s visit to Nettaru’s residence.
Meanwhile, the BJP in Karnataka is facing a crisis as workers manning the BJP IT Cell have put down their phones and laptops to go on strike, in what is perhaps the first such protest in the party’s aggressive social media history.
'Please Stand Firm With Party’: BJP leader DV Sadananda Gowda
Protesting against BJP, many cadres have resigned following the murder of Praveen Nettaru. BJP senior leader DV Sadananda Gowda met with the cadre and requested them to take back their resignations on Saturday morning.
"I understand the anger, but one must also think about the pain the family is going through. This is a time of crisis and if Congress usurpes power, then situation will worsen. We can't let that happen. I request you to please stand firm with the party and ensure we remain in power," he said.
While adressing the workers, Gowda said, "Praveen was an honest karyakarta and a swayamsevaka. He tirelessly worked for strengthening the Sangh Parivar in Bellare, Nettaru and Puttur, where Congress has been dominant. This is not an easy task."
He added, "I have met him couple of times, but never had the opportunity to know him very well. This is despite he living just 15 kms away from my native place."
Stating that he understands the anger of the workers, Gowda said that "one must also think about the pain the family is going through."
"Today there are multiple groups expressing outrage. I request you to keep calm and not take part in any activities for some time. I request you to give me 15 days time and wait for the situation to calm down."
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