Shillong: The BJP on Monday sought strict action against the news portal that claimed that party leader Ram Madhav was caught red-handed by separatist NSCN with two Naga women in a hotel room in Nagaland even as the portal vanished.
"We are talking up with such cases very seriously and what is more suspicious is that the news portal which carried the story has completely vanished," Bharatiya Janata Party national spokesperson Nalin Kolhi told journalists here.
He said that the party has sought for appropriate action against those responsible for the mischief under various sections of the law and the Information Technology Act.
Senior BJP leader Rajiv Pratap Rudy, who was also present at news conference said: "It is a fictitious report intended to tarnish the image of Ram Madhav. Fake news cannot be tolerated. Suspiciously, the news portal has vanished but we are following up with the case aggressively."
Quoting sources, media portal "Newsjoint" claimed that last week, Madhav, the BJP General Secretary in-charge North East, "was caught red-handed and saffron faced, working well beyond his brief, with two Naga women in a hotel room".
"Madhav was held in captivity by the NSCN (Nationalist Socialist Council of Nagaland) for hours. He then made frantic SOS calls to Assam (minister) colleague Himanata Biswa Sarma, BJP's trouble shooter in the Northeast," the report alleged, adding that Madhav was released only after Sarma reached out to the NSCN.
The news portal also claimed that the NSCN also has the video footage in possession, which it has threatened to release in public, "if the BJP-RSS do not give in to its demand to call off the assembly elections in Nagaland, due on February 27".
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Udupi (Karnataka) (PTI): The VHP on Saturday demanded the immediate withdrawal of a proposed amendment to the Karnataka Prevention of Slaughter and Preservation of Cattle Act, 2020, accusing the state government of weakening a law that has deterred illegal cattle transport.
The organisation's Go Raksha Wing, Karnataka South, has also announced district-level protests on December 8.
According to officials, the existing law mandates a bank guarantee for securing the release of vehicles seized for alleged illegal cattle transportation.
On December 4, the state Cabinet proposed an amendment enabling the release of such vehicles on an indemnity bond instead.
Addressing reporters in Udupi, VHP leader and Prantha Goraksha Pramukh Sunil K R, said the government's move amounted to "sympathy for cattle lifters" and claimed that it was part of broader actions "targeting Hindus".
He argued that the law in its current form is stringent and has played a crucial role in reducing incidents of illegal cattle transport and theft.
Under the Act, vehicles involved in offences can be surrendered and, upon conviction, permanently seized by authorities. "Diluting these provisions will embolden offenders," Sunil said.
The VHP leader warned that easing the process of vehicle release would not only encourage violators but also result in rising cruelty against cattle.
Sunil further claimed that the strict enforcement of the 2020 law had brought down cases of cattle-related offences significantly. Rolling back these provisions, he said, could reverse those gains and would lead to an increase in illegal transport.
He reiterated that the government must reconsider its decision and preserve the integrity of the existing law.
