Bengaluru: The Vidhana Soudha Police made three arrests yesterday in connection with the chanting of ‘Pakistan Zindabad’ slogans within the corridors of Vidhana Soudha during the victory celebrations of Rajya Sabha (RS) member Syed Naseer Hussain.

“After the RS polls at Vidhana Soudha on Feb. 27, a case was registered regarding the chanting of ‘Pakistan Zindabad’ slogans following the election results. Subsequent to the Forensic Science Lab (FSL) report, circumstantial evidence, witness statements and available evidence, three individuals have been arrested. Legal action will be taken against them,” stated the Police.

Deputy Commissioner of Police, Central Division, H.T. Shekhar confirmed that the arrests were made based on the FSL report, circumstantial evidence and witness statements.

The arrested individuals have been identified as Iltaz from Delhi, Munawar from R.T. Nagar in Bengaluru and Mohammed Shafi Nashipudi from Byadagi in Haveri district. They have been presented before the Court for further investigations.

The detained individuals initially denied any involvement in raising pro-Pakistan slogans during questioning. However, the Police persisted in their investigation and awaited the FSL report on the submitted video clip to verify the details of the incident.

Attempts to cover-up offence

Following the announcement of the Rajya Sabha election results, a video went viral alleging that some Congress supporters had chanted ‘Pakistan Zindabad’ slogans to celebrate the victory of party candidate Naseer Hussain.

However, some Congress leaders such as Ministers Priyank Kharge and Lakshmi Hebbalkar and AICC Karnataka in-charge Randeep Singh Surjewala refuted the allegations, claiming that supporters were instead cheering for Naseer Hussain by shouting “Naseer saab zindabad.” Efforts were made to blame media for ‘distorting’ the original audio clip.  

BJP MLAs protested both inside and outside the Vidhana Soudha, demanding the arrest of the accused. There were even attempts to edit the videos and many of them were released on social media to cover-up the offence. Multiple audio and video clips were sent in for the analysis.

The BJP, meanwhile, released an analysis of the audio and video by a private agency.

Vijayendra claims credit

Meanwhile, State BJP President B.Y. Vijayendra attributed the arrests to the persistent protests by his party. “The protests by BJP leaders and workers inside and outside Vidhana Soudha have borne fruit. We have now got information that three people have been arrested,” he said.

“They are traitors. I request the Chief Minister not to stop with their arrest. Justice doesn’t end there. Who are these people? What is their background? Are more involved? Who permitted them to enter the Vidhana Soudha? Who instigated them to shout these slogans? All these need to be investigated,” he asserted.