Karnataka Govt not acting firmly against attackers: CPI-M

The Communist Party of India-Marxist criticised the Karnataka government for "not acting firmly" against those who attacked a group of women in a pub in Mangalore last week.

The Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) on Tuesday criticised the Karnataka government for "not acting firmly" against those who attacked a group of women in a pub in Mangalore last week.

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"After the brazen and criminal attack on young women by the Shri Ram Sena in Mangalore, the BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party) state government has not acted firmly in taking action against this Hindu extremist outfit," the CPI-M politburo said in a statement in New Delhi.

On Saturday, a group of 40 people barged into the pub Amnesia - The Lounge and bashed up a group of young women and men, claiming the women were violating traditional Indian values. The girls were punched and their hair pulled by the self-styled moral brigade.

The police has so far arrested 27 of the 40 member group, including Sena state vice-president Prasad Attavara.

Recalling the organisation's role in a series of attacks on churches in Mangalore and targeting Christians in other places last year, the CPI-M said: "The failure to take firm action in these instances and the efforts to soft-pedal their activities by the home minister then have emboldened the group.

"The politburo demands that all the leaders of the Sena be arrested and immediate steps taken to proscribe the organisation’s activities."