Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Pratap Simha has courted controversy by claiming that the state’s former BJP government should have allowed “extrajudicial killing” in the murder case of rightwing workers Praveen Nettaru and Harsha Jingade. Speaking at a Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) event in Dakshina Kannada district on September 5, Pratap said, “The police had the opportunity to encounter the accused. They knew their location, they had a gun and a cartridge, but no permission was given by the BJP government to pull the trigger.”
Pratap Simha, a former Member of Parliament (MP) from Mysuru, was not given a party ticket by the BJP in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. The ticket was instead given to Yaduveer Krishnadatta Chamaraja Wadiyar from the Mysuru royal family, who went on to win the seat.
At the VHP event, Pratap heavily criticised the leadership of the BJP in the state, alleging that it lacked courage and loyalty to Hindutva ideology. He added that Karnataka needed a leader like Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, and not “casteist politicians.”
“Such leadership should be created by Hindu organisations. BJP needs a leadership with courage and loyalty to ideology and religion. Also, we should self-examine whether there is love and admiration for religion,” he said.
Pratap also took a dig at political dynasties in Karnataka, accusing senior leaders across party lines of prioritising their children over the needs of the public. He alleged that leaders such as BS Yediyurappa, Mallikarjun Kharge, HD Kumaraswamy, and Deve Gowda focused more on their family’s political success than broader governance.
The murders of Praveen Nettaru and Harsha Jingade had caused massive communal tension in Karnataka in 2022. Praveen, who was a member of the Karnataka BJP Yuva Morcha, was murdered by bike-borne assailants in Sullia taluk of Dakshina Kannada. Harsha, a 23-year-old Bajrang Dal member, was also stabbed to death in Shivamogga during the peak of hijab ban protests in Karnataka. Harsha had a criminal record and had previously been on the police’s radar in incidents of assaulting Muslim men and rioting.