Bengaluru, 11 Nov

Leader of the Opposition in Karnataka Assembly, R Ashoka on Tuesday demanded that the case involving a terror suspect allegedly using a mobile phone inside Bengaluru’s high-security Parappana Agrahara Central Jail be handed over to the National Investigation Agency (NIA). He also raised concerns about possible links between the suspect and those behind Monday’s blast near Delhi’s Red Fort, which killed 12 people.

Ashoka said investigators must determine whom the terror suspect was in contact with and how the device reached him. His remarks follow the emergence of videos last week purportedly showing inmates, including serial rapist Umesh Reddy and a terror suspect identified as Juhad Hameed Shakeel Manna, using smartphones and allegedly receiving preferential treatment inside the prison.

“There is suspicion that the incident in Delhi was a terrorist act. At the same time, a terror suspect used a mobile phone in Parappana Agrahara jail,” Ashoka said. “It must be probed whether he had any links with the perpetrators of the Delhi blast. Was he directly or indirectly involved? This angle is very important.”

Calling it a matter of national security, he demanded answers on who supplied the phone and who enabled the breach, describing the act as “treason”.

Ashoka further alleged that “highly educated individuals” were increasingly involved in terror activities, pointing to the Delhi blast and warning that “high-tech terrorists” required heightened vigilance. He also accused the Congress government of “appeasement”, claiming it had contributed to the current situation.