Karnataka home minister slammed for ‘insensitive’ remark on Bengaluru molestation case

The Bharatiya Janata Party on Monday reportedly slammed the Siddaramaiah government over the alleged molestation of a woman in Bengaluru. The BJP said the viral CCTV camera footage of the incident has exposed the reality of Karnataka capital's law and order situation and claimed that Bengaluru is becoming “increasingly unsafe” for women, NDTV reported.

The BJP's reaction comes after Karnataka home minister G Parameshwara sparked controversy after reacting to the disturbing case of sexual harassment in Bengaluru by saying that such incidents are “common in big cities".

BJP spokesperson Prashanth G said, "This is such an insensitive remark. Is he normalising sexual assault and crimes against women? He is shying away from responsibility and doesn't want to be accountable."

BJP MLA and former deputy chief minister Ashwath Narayan said the state home minister's remark reflects his helplessness, NDTV reported.

"The groping incident is condemnable. The home minister's response is disgusting and demotivating. People are losing confidence because of these incidents and statements. His statement shows how helpless he is as a home minister. He should make a responsible statement," NDTV quoted Narayana as saying.

G Parameshwara's remarks came in response to a viral CCTV camera video that showed a woman being groped by a man in Bengaluru’s BTM layout in the dead of night last week.

The incident, which has triggered widespread anger, was caught on a security camera and shared widely on social media, drawing attention to growing safety concerns for women in the city.

“Incidents like these tend to happen here and there in a big city like this. Whatever legal action needs to be taken will be done in accordance with the law. I have also instructed our commissioner to increase beat patrolling,” news agency ANI quoted G Parameshwara as saying.

Incident caught on CCTV camera

The CCTV camera footage of the incident is in wide circulation on social media. It shows two women walking through a narrow alleyway when a man who was seemingly following them caught them unawares, cornered them and groped one of the women before fleeing the scene.

Reeling under the shock of what had happened, the women walked away after the incident.

According to the timestamp of the footage, the incident happened on April 3 around 1:52am.

While none of the women have come forward to register a complaint, the Bengaluru police has filed a suo motu case against the accused, India Today reported. A case under Section 354B, which deals with the assault or use of criminal force with intent to disrobe a woman, has been filed.

Incidents of sexual harassment against women are commonly reported in Bengaluru. In a recent such incident in January this year, a 24-year-old was allegedly harassed by two men who forcibly entered a cab she had booked in Bengaluru. The incident took place around 2 am on January 27 when two unidentified men entered the vehicle as soon as the woman did, leading to a confrontation between the men and the cab driver, the police said.

When the woman decided to leave the cab in panic, one of the accused allegedly chased her and grabbed her by the neck while the other one tried to rip off her clothes. The woman screamed for help, following which, the accused fled.