Democratic Youth Federation of India State president Muneer Katipalla said on Monday that he will stand by Minister for Forest, Ecology and Environment B. Ramanath Rai even as he has been targeted by fundamentalist groups from two religious communities after the recent clashes in Kalladka.
In a statement, Mr. Katipalla questioned the legislators from the Bharatiya Janata Party for targeting Mr. Rai in the Legislative Assembly on Monday for his statement asking Dakshina Kannada Superintendent of Police Bhushan Gulabrao Borase to take action against RSS leader Kalladka Prabhakar Bhat if he made provocative speeches.
Mr. Katipalla said that the BJP did not show the same anger when Mr. Bhat made provocative speeches holding a section of a community responsible for the murder of Harish Poojary in November 2015. The BJP was also silent when MP Nalin Kumar Kateel made a statement during a protest that he could too create unrest in Dakshina Kannada.
Mr. Katipalla said that it was sad that the BJP was agitating against a statement of Mr. Rai when the principal opposition party should have focussed on important issues concerning the State.
