Another Karnataka minister on Friday made a controversial remark while reacting to the Mysuru gang-rape incident, saying the survivor should not have gone to the deserted place, a day after his colleague made a similar statement.
“Whether they are a young couple or newly married couples, they should not go to such places at all. We can’t tell everyone not to go there. We can’t keep the police in every single spot and be vigilant. Only when it comes to light can the police take action,” Anand Singh, minister for tourism, environment and ecology, said on Friday.
A 22-year-old college student was allegedly raped by five men near Chamundi Hill on the outskirts of Mysuru on Tuesday. The woman and her male friend, who was assaulted by the gang, are undergoing treatment in a private hospital, police said.
Reacting to Singh’s remarks, Dr Yathindra Siddaramiah, Congress legislator from Varuna in Mysuru district, said: “We are no one to dictate what time women should go out. It is the government’s job to give everyone protection. Its not their job to see who went where at what time. Instead of making such statements, the ministers should perform their responsibilities.”
Singh’s comments came a day after state home minister Araga Jnanendra questioned the timing of the survivor’s visit to the deserted spot where she was gangraped. As the home minister’s comments sparked a war of words between the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Congress, he said the opposition party was politicising the issue. “The rape has happened there in Mysuru, but the Congress is trying to rape me. They are trying to gain political mileage in that incident,” he said on Thursday.
{{/usCountry}}Singh’s comments came a day after state home minister Araga Jnanendra questioned the timing of the survivor’s visit to the deserted spot where she was gangraped. As the home minister’s comments sparked a war of words between the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Congress, he said the opposition party was politicising the issue. “The rape has happened there in Mysuru, but the Congress is trying to rape me. They are trying to gain political mileage in that incident,” he said on Thursday.
{{/usCountry}}Jnanendra withdrew his comments on Friday after facing a barrage of criticism, saying he had “no intention to hurt anybody”. “I had withdrawn the statement made earlier on the Congress party leaders. We are committed to ensuring the safety of all sections in the society,” Jnanendra said while addressing a press conference.
Shivaram Hebbar, Karnataka’s minister for labour, on Friday, defended the home minister and said: “This is an unfortunate and heinous (crime). It could happen to anyone under any government. It has not happened only when our government is there. Such incidents have happened for years, under the Congress and all governments . This (oppostion balming the BJP) is a political ploy.” .
He also said that security measures will be tightened to ensure the protection of all, especially women, in the state. “A police investigation is underway to nab the culprits. The girl is under medical care at a hospital. Security will be tightened further to ensure the protection of all, especially women,” he added.
Reacting on the incident, Manjula Manasa, an advocate and former chairperson of the Karnataka State Women’s Commission, said on Friday: “I feel disgusted that despite being an MBA student I don’t know why she came here at that time. That is a mistake too.”
Meanwhile, chief minister Basavaraj Bommai on Friday said that the state director general of police, Praveen Sood, will supervise the investigation into the gang-rape case. “The DGP is going to Mysuru. I have directed him to supervise the investigation and crack the case at the earliest,” the CM told reporters.