BENGALURU, 13 AUG

The BJP urged Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot to prevail upon the State government to hand over the probe into the murder of a Hindu activist in Koppal to the NIA, alleging a "deep-rooted conspiracy" by Jihadi extremist groups.

In a detailed memorandum submitted to the Governor at Raj Bhavan, the BJP legislators said that the 3 August murder of Gavisiddappa Nayak, a Scheduled Tribe Valmiki community leader, in front of the Syed Nadeemullah Qadri Mosque at Koppal town. bore the "stamp of the PFI and SDPI". The BJP accused the Congress government of showing a "soft corner" to "dangerous elements."

The BJP legislators alleged that the prime accused, Sadiq Kolkar, had openly paraded with swords and machetes in Koppal a day before the murder and posted videos on social media.

"Had the police made preventive arrests on the same day, the murder, perhaps, could have been prevented. We charge the police of dereliction of duty, negligence and irresponsibility," they said. "The intention and motive are very clear -- to create terror among the Hindus.”

"The pusillanimous attitude of the State government headed by Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and the flip-flop approach of Home Minister G Parameshwara have been the main contributions for this bloody chapter," it stated.

The BJP legislators argued that the NIA probe was necessary to uncover "the nefarious designs of the jihadi forces."

They claimed that the killers were "trained and abetted by sleeper cells with foreign funding" and said only a central investigation could ensure a "fair, transparent and thorough probe."