A S Ponnanna.
Credit: DH file photo
Bengaluru: Chief Minister’s Legal Advisor A S Ponnanna on Friday said the police would investigate the death of BJP worker Vinay Somaiah and accused the party of “interference” in the probe.
Expressing grief over Somaiah’s death, Ponnanna said, “Regardless of the party, a life has gone. It shouldn’t have happened. I’m with his family. But the BJP is trying to play politics over death.”
Ponnanna said that a case was registered in February naming three people, including Somaiah, for derogatory social media posts.
“An anticipatory bail was granted on the FIR immediately. The FIR was stayed immediately. None of them spent a day in jail. The court stay remains to this day. What was the humiliation? How am I involved? I don’t know (Somaiah) and he doesn’t know me,” the Virajpet MLA said.
Noting that Somaiah was in the BJP’s IT cell, Ponnanna claimed that he might have been used by the party. “Maybe that’s why the BJP has, in an organised manner, jumped into protests and exerting pressure on the police,” he said. Ponnanna also questioned the existence of a death note in this case. “Is there a handwritten note? Since when did a WhatsApp message become a death note? Was it written by him or someone else? There are fundamental questions,” he said.