J P Nadda condemns Belagavi incident as 'shameful,' constitutes fact-finding team

New Delhi: BJP chief J P Nadda on Friday condemned as "shameful" the Karnataka incident where a Dalit woman was assaulted and paraded naked, saying such "heinous crimes" against women are happening "at regular intervals" since the Congress came to power in the state.

Nadda also constituted a five-member fact finding committee comprising the party's women MPs to visit the village in Karnataka where the incident happened and submit a report to him, BJP national general secretary Arun Singh said in a statement.

A woman was allegedly assaulted, paraded naked, and tied to an electric pole in Vantamuri village of Belagavi district on December 11 after her son eloped with a girl who was going to get engaged with someone else, according to Karnataka Police.

Eight people have been arrested and a hunt is on for the eight others allegedly involved in the case.

The Karnataka High Court has taken up the matter on its own.

"BJP national president Jagat Prakash Nadda has strongly condemned the heinous incident of parading naked of a tribal woman in Belagavi, Karnataka. Such heinous crimes, especially against women, are happening at regular intervals ever since the Congress has come to power in Karnataka," Singh said in the statement.

The incident also exposes the "irresponsible behaviour" of the Congress governments "everywhere in the country" in tackling such crimes, read the statement.

BJP MPs from Karnataka also staged a protest in the Parliament complex on Friday against the incident.  "Law and order situation in Karnataka has fully collapsed. An SC lady, for no reason, was made naked and a procession was taken out, She was tied to an electric pole and beaten... Karnataka Congress government doesn't give security to SC, ST ladies," BJP leader and former Karnataka chief minister Sadananda Gowda said.  The five-member fact finding committee comprises BJP MPs Aprajita Sarangi, Sunita Duggal, Locket Chatterjee, Ranjeeta Koli, and party national secretary Asha Lakra.

"The committee will submit its report to the party national president at the earliest," Singh said.

The BJP's Karnataka unit president B Y Vijayendra on Friday said the party will stage a statewide agitation on December 16 condemning the Belagavi incident.

Addressing reporters in Belagavi, Vijayendra alleged that the state government has not taken the case seriously as the eight accused are still at large.

Also, the Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has not yet met the survivor in the hospital, he charged.