NEW DELHI: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) cancelled its anniversary events in Karnataka scheduled for today amid the raging controversy over the murder of Yuva Morcha leader Praveen Nettaru late on Tuesday night.
The BJP had planned multiple events, including an official event at Vidhana Soudha, and ‘Janotsava’, a mega rally at Doddaballapur that was scheduled to be attended by BJP national president JP Nadda, in the state to celebrate three years of BJP government in the state and one year of Bommai government.
In a hastily called press conference at midnight, Chief Minister Basavraj Bommai announced that all the events have been cancelled. He also added that his government will constitute an Anti-Terror Squad focusing on PFI-like extremist organisations.
Union Minister Shobha Karandlaje, who hails from Karnataka, wrote a letter to Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Wednesday evening requesting him to order NIA to take over the murder case of Praveen.
“I draw your kind attention to the brutal murder of our young karyakarta named Praveen Nettaru, aged 32 years from Bellare in Dakshina Kannada district of Karnataka. The Dakshina Kannada region…is getting disturbed by the series of violence unleashed by the extremist groups…I request your kind self to direct the NIA to take over this case and provide justice to the family of Praveen Nettaru,” Karandlaje wrote.
The BJP MP (Lok Sabha) from Bengaluru South and president of BJP Yuva Morcha Tejasvi Surya expressed his condolences to the bereaved family and assured them that justice will be done swiftly in the case.
Three bike-borne assailants had hacked Praveen to death on Tuesday night. The police suspect that the murderers were from neighbouring Kerala as the bike had a Kerala registration number. A local Popular Front of India (PFI) leader Shafi Bellare is also being investigated in the case as he had threatened Praveen a few days back.
Praveen had complained to the local police about the threats he was receiving but the police had allegedly dismissed it.
In his late-night press conference, Chief Minister Bommai assured that a special Anti-Terror Squad will be constituted soon to check all those elements who want to disturb peace in the region.