Mangaluru: Forest minister B Ramanath Rai said all leaders who make provocative speeches and protect criminals should be put behind bars and he has discussed the same with chief minister Siddaramaiah and senior police officials.Rai, who had embroiled in a controversy after a video clip of him purportedly asking then superintendent of police Bhushan Gulabrao Borase to arrest RSS leader Kalladka Prabhakar Bhat, said there is nothing wrong in a minister speaking to an SP. "Being the district minister, I had spoken to SP with the sole intention of restoring peace in the district. There is nothing wrong in it. Only a portion of my discussion with SP went viral on social media. People criticized me without knowing the truth," Rai said.Provocative speeches by leaders are the main reason for communal disturbances in the district. "Youths, who are instigated through provocative speeches, create trouble in the district. Police book only those miscreants, who are directly involved in communal clashes. Sometimes, innocents are booked for no fault of theirs. However, those who instigate criminal acts, go scot-free. I have directed the police to arrest the masterminds and not torture the innocents," Rai said adding that he has never made any provocative speech in his career.Alleging the involvement of Prabhakar Bhat in the murder of Congress leader Ismail Karopady, Rai said. "The accused, who were arrested in connection with the Karopady murder case, are closely associated with Bhat. Action needs to be taken against those who protect such criminals," Rai said.Rai said he was being targeted by both Hindu and Muslim fundamentalists. "Fundamentalists from Hindus and Muslims keep criticizing me. This very fact proves that I am a true secular leader," Rai said and thanked dalit organisations, Ahinda organisations, DYFI and SFI for standing up for him when he was entangled in the video clipping controversy.

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