Neha Hiremath Murder: As Father of the Victim Accuses Police in the Matter, BJP Bolsters its Attack on the Karnataka Govt

BJP attacks Karnataka's Congress govt over alleged police negligence in Neha Hiremath murder case, as victim's father demands CBI probe and removal of police commissioner.

The BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party) has now launched a full-blown attack on the Congress government in Karnataka over the alleged mishandling of the probe into the murder of college student Neha Hiremath. A vice to the opposition party is that the victim's own father, Niranjan Hiremath, blames the police for incompetence and involvement in a process of diversions.

Niranjan Hiremath, a congressman (councilor), openly demanded a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into his daughter's murder. He claimed that the police are nine days (eight days) down the road and have not made any arrests despite him giving them the names of eight suspects. "Even my faith gets lessened now. It is being diverted by the cases," he added to ANI on Sunday.

In addition, the deputy mayor also requested the transfer of the lady police commissioner, who was supposed to be supervising the case, as he accused her of not taking the case seriously. He asked for the commissioner's transfer, saying, "She is under some pressure. I demand the commissioner to be replaced for negligence in the case."

The BJP has managed to twist Hiremath's allegations against the state Congress government, which holds the reins of power. BJP's IT head, Amit Malviya, blamed the government for being soft on the killer(s) while trying to appease the minority community. "I tried reaching out to the Congress leaders and the district authorities, but I was either ignored, or I got no response at all... The helpless father now blames the Congress Govt for being soft and slow on his daughter's killer(s). It’s like having another crisis when the family is already coping with the murder of their daughter. Will Neha ever get justice?" Malviya wrote on X (formerly unknown source).

In addition to this, BJP chief J P Nadda also alleged that the state's CM Siddaramaiah and the State's Home Minister G Parameshwara tried to "affect and influence" the case by undermining the gravity of the crime. They accused him of "trivializing" the incident by describing it as a "normal thing" or an "accident" and said he wanted to pass the buck. Similarly, they charged him with "appeasement politics" because that was the reason he gave these statements.

Also Read: M.K. Stalin Of The DMK Has Rebuked The BJP For The 'Saffronisation' Of Doordarshan's Logo

On April 18, a young girl named Hiremath, who was only 21, was stabbed to death by her former classmate Fayaz Khondunaik on the campus of BVB College in Hubballi. The murder has ignited a political brawl as the BJP refers to it as 'love jihad'- a term used by Hindu right-wing groups when a girl marries a boy from another religion deliberately to change hers by force.

The Karnataka government, under the leadership of the Congress party, is being asked to execute the accused quickly as protests continue to call for the death penalty across Karnataka. The case has become a burning issue in politics.