The state government has decided to invoke the Goonda Act against Hindu Jagaran Vedike activists who attacked young revelers of a birthday party in Padil, on the outskirts of Mangalore on Sunday. Deputy Chief Minister R. Ashok, who is also in charge of the Home ministry, made the announcement in the Legislative Council on Tuesday after opposition parties alleged that some of the accused involved in Sunday’s attack were also part of the infamous 2009 pub attack in Mangalore. In the 2009 attack, many women who were at a pub were beaten up mercilessly by Sri Rama Sene activists.
Mr Ashok said that the police will deal with the culprits with an iron hand and have already slapped tough sections of the IPC against them. The police arrested three more accused in the case on Tuesday, taking the number of total arrested to 13. In all, 27 Jagaran Vedike activists were involved in the attack, he added.
The district administration has found that the Morning Mist Home-Stay, where the attack took place, was running illegally without licence. The government is contemplating on amending the Tourism Trade Act to include governing of home-stays, he said. Mr. Ashok said that no rave party was going on at Morning Mist Home-Stay as alleged by the Hindu Jagaran Vedike when they attacked them. It was a birthday party and no drugs were found at the party venue, he added.
On the Hindu organization objecting to the way the revelers were dressed, the minister said the state government has no power to impose a dress code and it is left to the parents of the youngsters.
Participating in the debate earlier, Opposition leaders S.R. Patil, M.C. Nananiah, Motamma and others took the government to task for allowing the Hindu organisations to do moral policing in Mangalore ever since the BJP came to power in 2008.
Ruling party member Lehar Singh, referred to the Deccan Chronicle article about the incident and said that repeat telecast of video footage of the incident in the electronic media had made the victims depressed. Mr. Singh has also urged the state government to ban rave parties in and around Bengaluru.