B’luru: Home Guard attached to BBMP harasses Delhi woman for sitting with male friend at lake
Accused Manjunath Reddy arrested by Bengaluru Police
Bengaluru: A BBMP employee was on Tuesday arrested for impersonating a cop and harassing a Delhi woman for sitting "without permission" near the Kundanahalli Lake with her male friend here on Sunday, 29 January.
The arrested accused have been identified as Manjunath Reddy V, who works for Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike.
The Delhi woman, who identifies herself as Arsha Latif on Twitter had posted a thread of tweets on Monday adding that the person wearing police clothes had harassed them and had made them pay a fine for “sitting without permission” at a public place. She had also accused him of moral police.
“Traumatic experience during visit to BLR. During afternoon, on 29/1/23 my male friend & I visited Kundanahalli Lake to sit in the shade & enjoy the view. A cop started clicking our pictures and started harassing us that we did not have the 'permission' to sit there while there were clearly benches beside us to sit for the general public. He started interrogating us about our jobs, hometown, our purpose of visit and said that we will have to come to the police station with him and pay a fine on grounds of 'sitting' without permission.
“When we asked what we had done wrong, he said you are not allowed to sit here without permission & you may be smoking here. We told him we don't have any cigarettes & we're just sitting here peacefully but he kept on interrogating us as to what the two of us were up to and that we cannot be together and sit there without permission. He then insinuated that he will take us to the police station and his senior will deal with us, but it's best to "settle the matter here" because he speaks a little Hindi but his senior only speaks Kannada.
“Ultimately he asked us to pay him off Rs. 1000 to let us go. Absolutely appalled by such behaviour. Why did we have to put up with this moral policing for literally doing nothing wrong? Why did this cop think he holds a right to harass two people like this for 'sitting without permission' at a public lake & extract money simply because they aren't of the same gender? Attaching a picture of his number plate, requesting @BlrCityPolice to pls take action” (sic) the woman had written in her tweet and had also posted a picture of the number plate of the man’s vehicle.
On Tuesday afternoon, the woman posted an update regarding the same adding that the Bengaluru Police had arrested the accused and thanked the city police for prompt action.
“UPDATE: I have received an update that the identified person Manjunath Reddy V has been arrested. He works for BBMP- Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike & was impersonating the police to extort money. Thank you @BlrCityPolice for escalating the matter & taking swift action.” She posted in her tweet on Tuesday.
In the tweet thread, several Bengaluru people expressed similar concerns adding that such incidents of people impersonating cops to extort money and harass people have been on the rise bringing bad repute to the city. Several people also accused the city police officials of being involved in such activities as extorting money and harassing people in the streets.
Traumatic experience during visit to BLR. During afternoon, on 29/1/23 my male friend & I visited Kundanahalli Lake to sit in the shade & enjoy the view. A cop started clicking our pictures and started harassing us that we did not have the 'permission' to sit there (1/6) pic.twitter.com/4KKMOT0ny7
— Arsha Latif (@ArshaLatif) January 30, 2023
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Internal discontent surfaces in BJD over shift on Waqf Bill stand
Bhubaneswar, Apr 6 (PTI): All doesn't seem well within the opposition BJD headed by former chief minister Naveen Patnaik as senior leaders of the regional outfit voiced their objections following the party’s alleged change of stand over the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2025 which was passed in Parliament recently.
While former minister Bhupinder Singh on Sunday described the prevailing situation in the BJD akin to ‘Kalabaishakhi’ (Nor’wester), party’s deputy leader in the Assembly and former MP Prasanna Acharya suspected the hand of some "external force" behind the party's alleged decision not to oppose the Waqf Bill.
The rift seems to be gradually widening with the BJD rank and file denouncing the change of party’s stand which has put its secular credentials at stake.
However, Acharya defended the party’s stand, saying there might have been a change in the decision regarding the Bill, but the BJD continues to uphold its secular credentials.
He further explained, "Ours is a secular party, maintaining equal distance from both the NDA and the UPA. As a regional party, BJD supports or opposes any issue based on the interests of Odisha."
Bhupinder Singh, also a former Leader of Opposition in the Assembly, acknowledged the discontent within the party over the Waqf Bill issue.
"There is discontent within the party, and we must accept it. However, our leader, Naveen Patnaik, is capable of handling the situation. This is just a temporary phase,”" Singh said, adding that Patnaik has always promoted communal harmony without religious discrimination.
The controversy began after Sasmit Patra, BJD’s leader in the Rajya Sabha, posted a message stating that party members were free to vote on the Waqf Bill based on their conscience.
This statement contradicted the party’s earlier decision, where the parliamentary party had resolved to oppose the Bill.
Acharya admitted that there has been widespread discussion within the party about who changed BJD’s stance and whether an "external force" is influencing the decision.
"Who is the force working for and against the party? All leaders are united in their view that such decisions should be made within the party forum, like the Parliamentary Party. The party will face problems if decisions are made by external forces," he said.
Acharya expressed confidence that Patra was not the person who altered the party’s stance on the Waqf Bill.
"Let Patra return from his foreign tour. He has no authority to make such decisions. He should be following directions from someone. Everything will be clear once he speaks out about who directed him to change the party’s decision," Acharya added.
He said discussions are ongoing within the party to identify those who might be operating behind the scenes, influencing critical decisions without the leadership’s knowledge.
Meanwhile, veteran Congress leader and former Leader of Opposition, Narasingha Mishra, alleged that someone else is making decisions for the BJD while Patnaik is effectively in "house arrest."
Mishra claimed, "He is being controlled from behind the scenes by his chief advisor. This is not the first time he has been put in such a position."
He also alleged a possible "deal" between the BJP and the BJD, suggesting it could explain the party’s shift in stance on the Waqf Bill.
Adding to the controversy, BJP MP Balabhadra Majhi predicted the eventual collapse of the BJD, saying, "The party has no ideology or guiding principles and is being driven by inexperienced leadership. It will soon vanish from the state’s political landscape."
