Belagavi (Karnataka) [India], December 18 (ANI): Karnataka BJP President BY Vijayendra on Thursday launched a sharp attack on the Congress for staging a protest over the National Herald case, asserting that the High Court has not given a clean chit to the Gandhi family and accusing the party of attempting to create unrest by targeting constitutional bodies.

Speaking to ANI in Belagavi, Vijayendra said, 'The High Court has not given a clean chit to the Gandhi family in the National Herald case. By protesting against the Election Commission and central agencies, the Congress party is trying to create anarchy in Karnataka and across the country. The desperate Congress party is trying to blame the central government.'

The BJP leader also targeted Karnataka Revenue Minister Krishna Byre Gowda, alleging illegal land acquisition by his family. 'Being the Revenue Minister, he cannot take land illegally. Krishna Byre Gowda's family has taken over 21 acres of land. It is a serious issue, and we will raise it on the floor of the House,' Vijayendra said.

In a separate statement, Gowda said he had met the party's newly appointed Working President and reaffirmed his commitment to strengthening the party in the state.

'I met our new Working President, and I assured him that we will strengthen the party in Karnataka and under his guidance, the BJP will come back to power with a full majority in the state,' Gowda said.

Meanwhile, a massive deployment of security personnel was reported at the Telangana Congress headquarters, Gandhi Bhavan, and at Shyama Prasad Mukherjee Bhavan in Nampally, Hyderabad, ahead of a planned protest march.

The Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee (TPCC) had announced a protest against the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), alleging political vendetta against senior Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi in connection with the National Herald case.

TPCC President and MLC Mahesh Kumar Goud, along with other senior Congress leaders, are scheduled to participate in a protest march from Gandhi Bhavan to the Telangana BJP headquarters at Nampally today.

Authorities have deployed a substantial number of police personnel at both locations to ensure law and order and prevent any untoward incidents during the march.

On Wednesday, Karnataka Congress leaders also staged protests near the Gandhi statue at Suvarna Soudha in Belagavi against the Central government over the National Herald case and the decision to rename the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) as VB-G Ram G.

Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah and Deputy CM DK Shivakumar also joined the Congress protest.

On Tuesday, the Delhi court declined to take cognisance of the Enforcement Directorate's prosecution complaint in the National Herald money-laundering case, holding that proceedings under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) are not maintainable in the absence of an FIR for the scheduled (predicate) offence.

The court stated that the ED's complaint against Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, Sam Pitroda, Suman Dubey, Young Indian, Dotex Merchandise Pvt Ltd and others was based on a private complaint filed by BJP leader Subramanian Swamy and the summoning order passed on it in 2014, and not on any FIR. It held that such a complaint cannot substitute the statutory requirement of an FIR under the PMLA framework. (ANI)