Bengaluru police arrest Congress workers for calling election officials agents of BJP

The Bengaluru city police booked Congress workers for staging a protest in front of Karnataka's Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) in Sheshadri Road on Monday (November 25) accusing EC officials of functioning as the agents of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

Nearly 50 Congress workers have been booked by the city police after a complaint was filed by model code of conduct (MCC) officer, Jayasimha HN at Halasurugate Police Station. In his complaint, the officer stated that the party workers did not take prior permission from the concerned authorities to organise the protest.

'Clear violation of the MCC'

He said that such unauthorised protests are a clear violation of the MCC. The police have booked the protesters and charged them for public nuisance, unlawful assembly and under various sections of the Karnataka Police Act. Video footages of the protest are also being verified by the police to identify the protestors.

After, Congress state unit chief Dinesh Gundu Rao on Saturday alleged that the Commission has of the current regime and accused it of acting in a partisan manner.

In September, Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) President Dinesh Gundu Rao had also alleged that the Election Commission (EC) has become a BJP agent after the electoral body deferred Karnataka by-polls to 15 Karnataka assembly constituencies.

He had said that EC is compromised and is acting only to benefit BJP and the disqualified MLA's, who have now joined the saffron party. He also said that it is shameful to see the poll body acting as an agent for a specific political party.

In another incident, the followers of the independent candidate from Hoskote assembly constituency Sharath Bachegowda assaulted BJP workers who were campaigning for MTB Nagaraj in the constituency. The police have booked a few of Gowda's followers for the attack, based on a complaint by a BJP supporter, Manjunath Achari, who suffered injuries in the attack.

MTB Nagaraj said that Bachegowda's have been doing radical politics from past several years and now Sharath is also following his family's path. He said that his supporters have been attacked by iron rods and pelted with stones and again the political 'goondaism' has begun during the election time.