Congress slams 'right-wing' groups for attack on Kannada writer

In the wake of the recent attack on Kannada writer Yogesh Master, Congress leader and legal advisor to the Government of Karnataka Brijesh Kalappa condemned the attack, stating that such attacks are common with writers who preach rationalism.

Master, the author of a controversial Kannada novel 'Dundhi', was attacked on Monday by unidentified persons, who smeared his face with black oil.

To this regard, Kalappa, in an interview with ANI, highlighted similar events in the past and alleged that certain right-wing organisations in Karnataka, Goa and Maharashtra have chosen to oppress rationalist thinkers and writers by such attacks.

"The only way these (right-wing) organisations can match a writer's intellect is by resorting to violence, be it Govind Pansare, Narendra Dabolkar or M.M. Kalburgi. I urge that the culprits need to be punished immediately and attacks of such nature need to be curbed," said Kalappa, drawing parallels to the recent Ramjas College row in Delhi.

With regards to the recent assembly polls in Goa and Manipur, the Congress leader slammed the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), stating that the 'Modi Sarkar' has not learnt any lesson from the 'severe rap they received from the Supreme Court.

"The Prime Minister has time and again re-iterated the party's objective to achieve a 'Congress-free India'. This is the concern, rather than taking the country forward or developing the economy. In both Goa and Manipur, the BJP is trying to stifle democracy with money," said Kalappa.