A BJP worker in Karnataka’s Hubballi has accused police personnel of assaulting and disrobing her during her arrest earlier this week. The arrest was in connection with an incident linked to the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. The police have denied the allegations, maintaining that the woman attacked officers and removed her clothes herself while resisting arrest.
The woman, identified as Sujatha Handi, also known as Vijayalakshmi, was arrested by Keshwapur police on Monday, January 5, following complaints related to an altercation involving government officials conducting the SIR exercise in Chalukya Nagar. The incident has triggered a political faceoff between the BJP and the Congress, with both parties trading allegations.
Two videos related to the arrest went viral on Wednesday, January 7, including one that showed Sujatha being taken to a police vehicle. Following this, BJP leaders alleged that the police stripped and assaulted her while detaining her.
Police said three FIRs have been registered against Sujatha based on complaints, including one filed by local resident Prashanth Bommaji. According to the police, a case has also been filed against her for obstructing officers and assaulting police personnel during the arrest.
Hubballi-Dharwad Police Commissioner N Shashikumar rejected the allegations of custodial assault and said Sujatha had resisted arrest violently. “Sujatha Handi attacked our police personnel during the arrest. She removed her clothes after being taken into custody and assaulted female police staffers, biting and pushing them. She has multiple cases against her, and four police personnel were injured in the incident,” he said.
The injured police personnel include Sub-Inspector Kalavathi, Assistant Sub-Inspector Shakuntala, and women constables Margaret and Lakshmi Vaddar from the Hubballi Women’s Police Station. Shashikumar said an inquiry has been ordered into the sequence of events between January 1 and January 5, and that Sujatha has been remanded to judicial custody. “She bit one of the woman police officers, and another case has been registered based on a complaint by a woman police officer for assault and obstruction of duty,” he added.
According to the Commissioner, government officials were conducting a voter list survey on January 1 when Sujatha allegedly quarrelled with neighbours over the process. He said that officers went to arrest her with a team of eight to 10 women personnel, and that she removed her clothes while being taken to the police vehicle. “The women officers requested local residents for clothes and repeatedly asked her to dress herself,” he said.
The incident is rooted in a dispute between BJP and Congress workers over the presence of party workers during the SIR process. Congress corporator Suvarna Kallakuntla had complained that BJP workers were accompanying a Booth Level Officer (BLO) during voter list revision, allegedly in violation of norms.
According to a report by The Times of India, Sujatha alleged that she was assaulted and stripped by police following a complaint filed by Suvarna. She told TOI that BJP workers were accompanying officials during the SIR process when Congress supporters objected. The police, however, told Times of India that when officers attempted to arrest her, she grabbed their mobile phones, resisted detention, removed her clothes and insisted on other women recording videos.
The Times of India further reported that Prashanth Bommaji filed a complaint alleging that he was assaulted by Sujatha and others for questioning the presence of BJP workers alongside the BLO during the SIR. Suvarna told TOI that the BLO should have conducted the revision independently or with booth agents from all parties, and alleged that Sujatha later assaulted residents who raised objections.
Police have said that Sujatha has nine previous criminal cases against her, including cases of murder, assault, and obstruction, and that four cases were registered this year.
BJP leaders, meanwhile, accused the police of acting inhumanely and at the behest of Congress leaders. BJP MLA CT Ravi said, “It is not just a violation of human rights but an atrocity against a woman. I demand that the government take action against the police for treating Sujatha inhumanly.” Local BJP MLA Mahesh Tenginakai also alleged that the police acted under pressure from Congress corporator Suvarna Kallakuntla.
Congress leaders rejected the allegations. Congress leader Rajat Ullagaddimath accused Sujatha of attempting to assault party workers and alleged that BJP leaders had instigated unrest. District in-charge Minister Santosh Lad said there was no wrongdoing by the police and that evidence showed the woman had attacked police personnel and removed her clothes herself. He said Chief Minister Siddaramaiah had been briefed on the incident.
Following the arrest, BJP workers staged a protest outside the Keshwapur Police Station, alleging that the Congress government had failed to protect women.