Complaint filed against K'taka Cong chief over remark defending Umar Khalid
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Bengaluru: Hindu activist Tejas Gowda on Wednesday filed a complaint at the Vidhana Soudha police station in Bengaluru against Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) President B.K. Hariprasad over his remarks describing jailed activist Umar Khalid as a "nationalist" and questioning the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP)'s authority to comment on him.
Gowda alleged that Hariprasad's remarks were objectionable and aimed at spreading hatred in society. He urged the police to register a criminal case against the Congress leader.
Speaking to the media, Gowda said Hariprasad had referred to Khalid as a "nationalist" within the Vidhana Soudha premises, which he claimed amounted to an insult to Indian citizens.
"As the Karnataka Congress President, he (B.K. Hariprasad) is glorifying a terrorist and has exposed his mindset and thinking before everyone," the Hindu activist alleged.
Gowda also referred to Khalid's arrest under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) in connection with the 2020 Delhi riots case and claimed that courts had rejected his bail pleas.
He alleged that describing Khalid as a "nationalist" was legally objectionable and questioned the Congress' position on the matter.
"Delhi riots case accused (Umar Khalid), who was arrested under the UAPA, is a nationalist for Hariprasad. This raises questions about the Karnataka Congress President and the party's policy," he said.
Gowda said police officials had informed him that the complaint would be registered. He warned that if the police failed to register an FIR, he would approach the court and seek directions for registration of the case.
The complaint came a day after Hariprasad defended his remarks on Khalid and questioned the ABVP's authority to speak about him, citing the organisation's ideological opposition to Mahatma Gandhi.
Hariprasad on Tuesday described jailed activist Umar Khalid as a "nationalist" and referred to his detractors as having no morals or ethics. His remarks came amid a controversy over a proposed screening of a documentary on Khalid at the National Law School of India University (NLSIU) in Bengaluru.
"Umar Khalid is a nationalist, and ABVP (Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarathi Parishad) has no right to speak on Umar Khalid because ABVP adores Nathuram Godse—who was an anti-national and the first terrorist of the country. They have no moral right or moral ethics to speak on Umar Khalid," Hariprasad told reporters in Bengaluru.
With IANS inputs