Congress govt, police will face consequences if BJP MLA is arrested: K’taka BJP chief

Bengaluru, May 22: Karnataka BJP President B.Y. Vijayendra warned on Wednesday that if BJP MLA Harish Poonja is arrested, the Congress government and the state police will face the consequences.

Speaking to reporters at the party headquarters here, Vijayendra said, “It is condemnable that the police are making attempts to arrest our MLA Harish Poonja. The police are hushing up the real matter.”

Poonja, the BJP MLA from Dakshina Kannada district, had agitated at a police station over an alleged false FIR lodged against a BJP worker who was subsequently arrested.

"The police are lodging cases against BJP workers out of spite. In response, Poonja went to the police station to support our party workers," Vijayendra claimed.

The BJP leader also claimed that Poonja lost his cool due to the highhandedness meted out to the BJP workers, and the FIRs registered against the party's Yuva Morcha workers.

“The BJP cannot tolerate atrocities against its workers. The police highhandedness was evident when they tried to arrest Poonja. The state government will be responsible for the consequences. The police will also be held responsible if Poonja is arrested,” Vijayendra said.

“I am warning the police officers in the Dakshina Kannada region. When the law and order system is functioning well, we will not tolerate police atrocities. I want to convey to the police that they are provoking a situation where law and order will collapse. The attempt to arrest the BJP MLA is not in good taste. We also demand the release of our party workers,” he said.

Vijayendra also drew the attention of state Home Minister G. Parameshwara to the targeting of BJP workers by the police across the state.

"BJP workers were killed in Kalaburagi. During the elections, a BJP worker was mowed down by a car in Kodagu district. Such incidents will not send a good message to the state's people,” he claimed.

The state BJP chief also accused the Congress government of hesitating to arrest the accused who raised 'Pakistan Zindabad' slogans at the Vidhana Soudha earlier this year.

"But BJP workers are targeted and jailed without any evidence," he said.

Vijayendra further clarified that there is no objection to police action against illegal quarrying.

"Shashiraj, a BJP mandal president, was arrested without evidence after an FIR was lodged against him despite MLA Poonja talking to the police officers. The cops had assured him that his name wouldn’t figure in the FIR, yet he was arrested. After the arrest, Poonja went to the police station and quarreled with the police," he said.

To recall, Poonja had gone to the Belthangady police station and taken the cops to task for arresting Shashiraj and others.

During the protest, he had issued objectionable statements, saying he would not hesitate to hold the collar of the police if BJP workers were touched.

Poonja also said that he would get the police station burned down like how the K.G. Halli police station was gutted in the infamous DJ Halli-KG Halli violence in Bengaluru.

Later, he withdrew his statements.