Sri Ram Sene's Dinker Shetty entered and exited Congress within hours
On Sunday, controversial activist Pramod Muthalik, notorious for an attack on women at a Mangalore pub, was admitted into the BJP and shown the door within hours. Now the Congress is facing similar embarrassment for recruiting Mr Muthalik's associate.
Congress leaders in Mangalore on Monday welcomed Dinker Shetty from Mr Muthalik's Sri Ram Sene, the group that barged into a club in 2009, dragged women by their hair, slapped and manhandled them, and accused them of "loose morals." Mr Shetty was the group's legal adviser.
Congress leader Janardhana Poojary, who is a candidate from the Dakshina Kannada constituency, was present when Mr Shetty was inducted. So was former union minister Oscar Fernandes, who later told NDTV he did not know Mr Shetty was an accused in the pub attack. "Corrective steps have been taken and he is not a member now. Action will be taken against those who facilitated his entry," Mr Fernandes said.
The Congress' Karnataka unit president, G Parameshwara, said he was unaware of Mr Shetty joining the party and blamed Mr Poojary.
"Dinker Shetty's induction has not been authorised. Janardhana Poojary may be a senior leader but the state Congress needs to approve such decisions," Mr Parameshwara told NDTV.
The row exposed a chasm between state and central leaders similar to what the BJP has also confronted. The party had blamed its Karnataka leaders for the blunder of inviting Mr Muthalik into the party, a decision that was withdrawn in five hours.
Senior BJP leader Arun Jaitley told NDTV that leaders in Delhi were taken aback by the Karnataka BJP's decision, but corrective measures had been taken. "The Karnataka state unit has no idea that India has changed," Mr Jaitley had said.