BJP workers protest Bengaluru event on Umar Khalid, taken into preventive custody

BJP workers, led by former Bengaluru Mayor M Gautham Kumar, staged a protest outside the heavily fortified BIC in the city on Tuesday ahead of an event. The editors of the book ''Umar Khalid and His World'' have planned a reading of excerpts from the book at the venue, followed by a discussion involving several ''historians and intellectuals''. The BJP activists raised slogans demanding the cancellation of the event. They attempted to enter the venue by breaking through the barricades put up by the police. Police personnel deployed at the spot took the BJP workers into preventive custody. The party had on Monday petitioned Bengaluru Police Commissioner Seemant Kumar Singh seeking cancellation of the event organised in support of activist Umar Khalid. A delegation of BJP leaders led by Bengaluru Central MP P C Mohan met the commissioner and submitted a memorandum in this regard. Khalid is currently in jail in connection with allegations of conspiracy in the 2020 Delhi riots. In a post on 'X' earlier in the day, the Karnataka BJP alleged that while courts are still hearing cases related to anti-national activities, the Congress-backed ecosystem is busy glorifying individuals who aim to divide Bharat. ''Why is Bengaluru being turned into a hub for celebrating such elements? Is this the 'cultural contribution' the Siddaramaiah government wants to promote? Our city is a land of innovators and patriots, not a playground for the 'Tukde Tukde' (divisive) narrative,'' it alleged. The Supreme Court on April 20 dismissed Khalid's plea seeking review of a verdict denying him bail, observing that there are reasonable grounds to believe the allegations against him in connection with the conspiracy behind the 2020 Delhi riots. The court had earlier said there was a prima facie case against Khalid and Sharjeel Imam (another accused) under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), noting that prosecution material suggests their involvement in the ''planning, mobilisation, and strategic direction'' of the riots. The February 2020 riots in northeast Delhi broke out during protests against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) and the National Register of Citizens (NRC), leaving 53 people dead and more than 700 injured.

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