Belagavi, 23 Dec

Minister Laxmi Hebbalkar on Monday asserted that she will continue her legal fight seeking justice in connection with BJP MLC CT Ravi allegedly using a derogatory word against her and said that she will request Legislative Council Chairman Basavaraj Horatti and Chief Minister Siddaramaiah to ensure swift action.

There is no question of forgiving Ravi at any cost, she said, and added that she will also seek justice from Prime Minister Narendra Modi and would write a letter to President Droupadi Murmu. "If I get an opportunity, I will meet the prime minister and bring to his notice the injustice that has happened to me," she said.

Ravi allegedly used a derogatory word against Hebbalkar in the Legislative Council on December 19 during an altercation between them, when the House was adjourned for a while. He was arrested on the same day evening and taken into the police van from the premises of Suvarna Vidhana Soudha in Belagavi, where the legislature session was held, based on Hebbalkar's complaint.

Also Read | Case registered over attempt to attack BJP MLC CT Ravi

"For two days, I had gone into silence because I was shocked. I had never heard such a thing from anybody. I have come forward in politics fighting injustice. There was no red carpet for me in my career. I have struggled for 26 years and come to this level," Hebbalkar told reporters here.

Hitting out at BJP, she said, she feels pity about -- state BJP President BY Vijayendra, Leader of Opposition R Ashoka and saffron party leaders from her Panchamasali Lingayat community Basangouda Patil Yatna and Arvind Bellad -- for supporting a person who made a woman feel "disgusted".

If he has any conscience, he should tell women in his family that he is feeling guilty, she demanded. Stating that she was shocked for a couple of days, the minister said she wont stop her fight against "injustice".

Noting that she will request the Chairman of the Legislative Council and the Chief Minister that the police investigation should be completed at the earliest and Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) report has to come, Hebbalkar said the BJP is portraying Ravi as though he is a "god" before the state. "Their (BJP) masks should be removed". –PTI