Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Saturday said that the murder of MCA student Neha Hiremath is not a case of "love jihad".

“I strongly condemn the act. The killer was arrested immediately. This is not a case of love jihad. The government will make sure that stringent punishment is being given to the killer,” the Chief Minister told media persons in Mysuru.

He said that it is unfortunate to use one’s death for political reasons.

“The case is being politicised unnecessarily. The protests will not affect the government,” the Chief Minister said.

Neha, the daughter of a Congress corporator in Hubballi, was stabbed to death inside the college campus in Hubballi city by Fayaz Kondikoppa on Friday.

However, other students caught Fayaz and handed him over to the police.

Meanwhile, the parents of Neha claimed that their daughter’s murder is a case of “love jihad”.

‘Love jihad’ refers to a bogus claim made by the Hindu right wing that Muslim men are ‘luring’ Hindu women into marriages to convert them to Islam.

Niranjan Hiremath, the father of Neha, has warned that his entire family will die by suicide if the investigation is misled and botched up.