The BJP on Monday hit out at the Congress government in Karnataka after a video surfaced showing an alleged IS recruiter, Jihad Hameed Shakeel Manna, using a mobile phone and watching television inside Bengaluru Central Jail.
The video, which has gone viral on social media, features Manna — accused of recruiting youth for the Islamic State — enjoying facilities prohibited for prisoners booked under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA).
Addressing a press conference at the BJP headquarters here, BJP National Spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla alleged that the Congress government had compromised national security by allowing such privileges to a terror accused.
“Instead of ensuring strict monitoring, the Congress government has handed over a mobile phone to an IS recruiter,” Poonawalla said.
“This shows how the Congress has a soft corner for Islamic jihadi terrorism. Under the NDA, terrorists are struck down; under the Congress, they get mobile phones and celebrations.”
Poonawalla further said, “Recently, a video from Bengaluru Central Jail surfaced showing Jihad Hameed Shakeel Manna, accused of recruiting for the terror group ISIS, using a mobile phone and watching television inside the jail. He is booked under UAPA and should have been kept under high-security conditions. Instead, the Congress government gave him a mobile phone, effectively allowing him to continue recruitment activities from inside the jail.”
Drawing a sharp contrast between the Modi-led NDA government and the previous UPA regime, Poonawalla cited the example of Jammu and Kashmir separatist Yasin Malik.
“Yasin Malik, who is now a convicted terrorist under the NDA government, was treated like a VVIP and even photographed with then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh during the Congress rule,” he said.
He further stated that while the BJP government under Prime Minister Narendra Modi has maintained a zero-tolerance policy towards terrorism — busting major Islamic terror plots from Jammu and Kashmir to Faridabad — the Congress-ruled Karnataka government was “offering luxury treatment to a jihadi terrorist.”
“This incident clearly highlights the difference between the two ideologies,” Poonawalla remarked. “While the NDA is committed to protecting citizens and crushing terrorism before it can strike, the Congress continues to indulge those who threaten India’s security,” he said.