A BJP MLA from Karnataka was on Wednesday booked for allegedly threatening Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s family on the same lines of the 1992 demolition of the Babri Masjid during a public programme in Udupi.The FIR was registered against Yashpal Suvarna at the Udupi Town Police Station on a complaint filed by Ashok Kumar Kodavoor, president of the Udupi District Congress Committee.Police have invoked Sections 57, 192, 196(2), 351(2), 352 and 353(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).According to the complaint, Suvarna, while addressing a BJP programme in Udupi, said, “If you continue to enact such dramas, just as our party workers destroyed the Babri Masjid in 1992 when our sentiments were hurt, the Congress dynasty and Rahul Gandhi’s family will likewise be destroyed.”The remarks triggered a political controversy in Karnataka, with the Congress accusing the BJP of resorting to hate speech and intimidation. Video clips of the speech have since gone viral on social media, prompting demands from the Congress for legal action.Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) Working President Manjunatha Bhandary said the state government had taken the matter seriously and would ensure action in accordance with the law. He described Suvarna’s statements as “hateful, derogatory and provocative” and said they were unbecoming of a public representative who has taken an oath to uphold the Constitution.The BJP leader had made the inflammatory remarks against the Congress and CJP during the recent protests over NEET paper leak.Bhandary also alleged that the BJP was attempting to divert attention from the NEET paper leak controversy and the nationwide protests over it by targeting Rahul through personal attacks.