Karnataka: Women's Commission Seeks Probe Into BJP MLC’s Slur

Bengaluru: Karnataka State Commission for Women (KSCW) Chairman Dr Nagalakshmi Chowdhury on Saturday made an appeal to Council Chairman Basavaraj Horatti to order an high-level investigation into the alleged derogatory slur made by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLC and former minister C.T. Ravi against Congress leader and Minister for Women and Child Welfare Laxmi Hebbalkar during the recent winter Assembly session in Belagavi on December 19.

In a letter to the Council Chairman, the Chairman of Commission for Women wanted Basavaraj Horatti to take a serious view of the derogatory slur against the Minister for Women and Child Welfare by C.T. Ravi. The alleged use of derogatory slur by C.T. Ravi, she observed, is an insult to women fraternity, hurting their feelings and their dignity.

Meanwhile, C.T. Ravi, at a press conference in Bengaluru on Saturday, stated police officers did not specify the reason before taking him to their custody on Thursday in Belagavi nor have furnished a copy of the First Information Registered (FIR) over his custody.

“My family members were also not informed by the police after taking into police custody,” said Ravi and alleged the State Government did not act in a transparent manner.

The BJP MLC alleged a few persons tried to attack him at the corridor of the Suvarna Soudha where winter session was in progress and the attackers threatened him of dire consequences and later Marshalls came to his rescue. Ravi alleged Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar and Minister for Women and Child Welfare threatened to finish him and his family members.

Ravi said to have given a complaint to Council Chairman Basavaraj Horatti through his party colleague and MLC Chalavadi Narayanaswamy over an attempted attack on him.

Explaining the police action, Ravi stated he was isolated from the rest of the BJP leaders while staging a protest in front of Suvarna Soduha in Belagavi and police took him to their custody at around 6.45 pm. Initially, he said, he was taken to Hirebagewadi before reaching Khanapur.

Ravi said police took him to Nandagada, Kittur, Savadatti, Ramdurg, Yadavada among other places before halting in a sugarcane field finally reaching DySP office.

In police custody, he alleged, he was not given water nor allowed to use the washroom. First aid to his head injury took 3-hours before police arranged for first aid through a nurse. Ravi stated he was unaware how he sustained head injury.

In Belagavi, a protest was staged by Laxmi Hebbalkar supporters against C.T. Ravi over his alleged derogatory slur and the protesters demanded dismissal of Ravi from MLC post. The protesters burnt an effigy of Ravi.