Pub attack case accused joins Cong; disowned by party later

, Mar 25: In a Pramod Muthalik-like episode for

, an accused in 2009 Mangalore

attack case who was also the former legal adviser to right wing outfit Sri Ram Sene, linked with the infamous incident, joined the party yesterday, only to be disowned by it hours later.

Dinakar Shetty, the 28th accused in the case, was among the many from different parties and other individuals who joined Congress at a workers convention here. But hours later, the district Congress president in-charge Kodicchal Ibrahim issued a one line statement, which citing "some confusion", said that he had not been admitted in the party.

"Against the backdrop of some confusion, he has not been admitted in the party," it said. The Congress' U-turn is almost a replay of BJP admitting controversial chief of Sri Ram Sene, Muthalik, into the party on Sunday and dumping him hours later setting aside his membership, following criticism within the party and from its opponents.

Muthalik, who is facing some 45 cases, including those relating to promoting enmity between two communities, blamed the Congress "conspiracy" for stalling his entry into BJP. A red-faced BJP central leadership had set aside the membership of Muthalik, linked with the attack by his outfit activists on women in a Mangalore pub in 2009 that had sparked national outrage.

Muthalik said he was hurt by BJP's "hasty" decision setting aside his membership. Activists of Sri Ram Sene, notorious for moral policing, had barged into a pub in Mangalore and assaulted youngsters - women and men - after accusing them of behaving in an "obscene manner".

PTI