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Those against Bengaluru's security should apologise: Tejasvi Surya on terrorism remark

Those against Bengaluru's security should apologise: Tejasvi Surya on terrorism remark

Newly-appointed national BJP Yuva Morcha chief Tejasvi Surya, MP, on Wednesday rejected suggestions that he should apologise for his remarks that  "terrorist organisations are using Bengaluru as their incubation centre". The MP, who represents Bengaluru South Lok Sabha segment, made the claim on Sunday after requesting Union Home Minister Amit Shah to set up a permanent division of the National Investigation Agency (NIA) in the city.

His comments evoked sharp criticism from opposition Congress and Janata Dal (Secular) with former Karnataka chief minister HD Kumaraswamy even calling it an insult to Bengaluru.

Tejasvi Surya however reiterated his stance when asked by reporters whether he would apologise over the controversial remark.

Speaking after visiting the state BJP office for the first time after being appointed as the party's Yuva Morcha National President, he said, "Bengaluru gave me education, food, and made me Parliamentarian.... It has given me an identity in the country....I'm identified as a boy from Bengaluru. It is my place," Tejasvi Surya said.

"I had told that Bengaluru should not become a terror hub and for that an NIA division has to be set up here," Tejasvi Surya added.

He further said that if someone is recruiting people for ISIS was arrested in Bengaluru it pained him. "If a mob of two thousand people attacks a police station here for a social media post, it boils my blood," he said, referring to the violence unleashed by a mob in the city in August.

"People who don't want NIA in Bengaluru for the safety of the city, are those from Congress who nurtured organisations like KFD (Karnataka Forum for Dignity), PFI, SDPI while in power,  withdrew cases against them and allowed them to do violence. It is they who have to seek apology from Bengalurians as they are against Bengaluru's interest," he added.

The NIA claimed to have arrested 127 ISIS sympathisers from across India between 2014 and 2019. Contrary to Tejasvi Surya's statement, the highest number of arrests (33) were from the southern state of Tamil Nadu. The Ministry of Home Affairs recently approved an NIA division in Chennai and Tejasvi Surya expressed confidence that the one in Bengaluru will be approved shortly.