BJP condemns ‘misuse’ of police, stages protest

The state BJP on Monday staged a statewide protest against the state government for “misusing” the police to target journalists, its sympathisers and workers.

“Home Minister M B Patil is acting as a dictator. He has been targeting journalists and BJP workers for posting comments on social media. Police arrested journalist S A Hemanth Kumar recently on baseless charges,” former deputy chief minister R Ashoka said while staging a protest along with the other party leaders in Bengaluru.

Accused the Home minister of misusing the police officers to target his political rivals, Ashoka said the journalist was arrested at the behest of the minister. “He had only posted a letter (purportedly written by the minister to Congress leader on the Lingayat religion issue) that was forwarded
to him by someone on social media” state BJP vice president Tejaswini Ananth Kumar said.

Ashoka further predicted that the Congress-JD(S) coalition government will collapse after May 23. People of the state will teach the alliance partners a befitting lesson in the elections, he added.