Hyderabad: A five-member fact-finding team of senior BJP leaders was arrested here Wednesday when they tried to visit the riot-affected areas after curfew was relaxed in the city.
The team comprising Rajya Sabha members K D Shanappa and Prakash Javadekar, Hubli MP Prahlad Joshi, spokesperson Nirmala Sitharaman and secretary Dr Laxman, were arrested when they tried to visit parts of Old Hyderabad which witnessed communal riots a few days back.
The BJP leaders claimed that the Congress government in the state was "acting in a dictatorial manner" against them.
"AIMIM MP Assadudin Owaisi from here, along with 20 of his followers went to a police station at 1 am when the curfew was on and demanded that his supporters be released but the government did nothing. However, when we tried to visit the
riot-hit areas we were arrested," Sitharaman told reporters.
"The Congress government here is hand in glove with the the Majlis Ittehadul-e-Muslimeen (AIMIM). There is one rule for AIMIM and another for the BJP here," she added.
She said the BJP team had asked the police to accompany them and promised all cooperation but were arrested.
"We wanted to visit the houses of the riot-affected people and see the cow-shed where cows were attacked," Sitharaman said.
Though curfew has been relaxed in the city, prohibitory orders have been imposed in some parts to prevent people from gathering in groups.
Curfew was imposed on March 29 evening following the clashes which erupted over putting up religious flags on the occasion of Hanuman Jayanti.
PTI
