The BJP on Saturday blamed the Chief Minister Amarinder Singh-led Punjab government for the "murderous" attack on its MLA Arun Narang in the state and demanded exemplary action against culprits.
In a statement, BJP general secretary Arun Singh condemned the mistreatment meted out to the legislator as extremely barbaric and painful.
"The BJP condemns this incident that happened under the Congress government's protection. The Amarinder Singh government of the Congress is directly responsible for it," the party said in the statement.
Narang was allegedly thrashed and his clothes were torn by a group of farmers at Malout in Muktsar district on Saturday, police said.
When the Abohar legislator reached Malout along with local leaders to address a press conference, they were surrounded by a group of protesting farmers and black ink was thrown at them and their vehicles, officials said.
The Punjab chief minister strongly condemned the attack on Narang and also warned of strict action against anyone trying to disturb peace in the state.
He urged the farmers not to indulge in such acts of violence and appealed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to urgently resolve the crisis triggered by the passage of the farm laws in Parliament last year to prevent the situation from escalating.
Hitting out at the state government, the BJP dubbed it a black spot on democracy and alleged that Congress workers were involved in the attack.
The party accused the Punjab Police of being a "mute spectator" to the incident and said it showed deep involvement of the state government.
Published 27 March 2021, 17:22 IST