Daijiworld Media Network - Bengaluru (SP)

Bengaluru, Nov 24: After former minister and opposition leader in the state legislative council, K E Eshwarappa, informed that he had received threats to his life over telephone, the government offered to reinforce his security with immediate effect.

Eshwarappa, who raised the topic at the legislative council session on Monday November 23, said that he received a call through internet (1669899) from a person who was speaking in Kannada sprinkled with liberal doses of Urdu words. He urged the government to do the needful.

Responding to the issue on behalf of the state government, both the leader of the house, S R Patil, and home minister, Dr G Parameshwar, promised to provide proper security to the BJP leader. They also said that a detailed probe would be ordered into the incident. They also said that some other ministers also have received threatening calls in the recent past, and that the desirability of recommending to the central government to conduct investigation through National Investigation Agency would be actively considered.

Eshwarappa reportedly earned the ire of the caller for raising the topics of Madikeri incidents and cow slaughter ban in the house. Eshwarappa said he received a missed call from the above number at 9.33 pm on Sunday. He received call from the same number again at 10,42 pm, which he picked. The caller, who was talking in a mixture of Urdu and Kannada threatened him for raising the above topics in the legislative council, he said, duly urging the government to identify the caller and take legal steps against him.

Eshwarappa said that he has the right to raise any topic inside the house, adding that threats like these come in the way of exercising his rights. He demanded suitable action from the government. Chairman of the council, Shankaramurthy, also asked the government to take suitable steps about the incident and to enhance security to the opposition leader and take other imperative steps.

Ganesh Karnik and K B Shanappa of BJP too asked the government to treat the incident with all seriousness, as such threat calls were received in the past by some ministers. Ivan D'Souza of the Congress said that people's representatives and dignitaries from coastal belt of Karnataka keep receiving such threats, adding that some people from here convey information to foreign countries and arrange for making such threat calls from foreign destinations. He also demanded for action against locals who arrange for such calls. V S Ugrappa favoured detailed probe by National Investigation Agency as the issue has international ramifications.