Bengaluru, April 28 : BJP's Karnataka President and MLA B.Y. Vijayendra on Tuesday welcomed the verdict of an NIA special court sentencing Mohammed Shariq, the prime accused in the Mangaluru cooker blast case, to 10 years of rigorous imprisonment, stating that the ruling reinforces the countryâ??s firm stance against terrorism.

He also demanded apologies from Congress leaders for issuing statements in favour of the accused after the incident.

In a statement, Vijayendra claimed that certain leaders had referred to the accused as â??brotherâ?? and described the blast as an â??accidentâ??, thereby attempting to justify acts of terror.

Vijayendra demanded that if those leaders have any moral responsibility, they should apologise to the people of the state.

He said the judgment in the Mangaluru cooker blast case demonstrates that forces threatening national security have no place in the system.

He added that the efficiency of central investigative agencies and the judiciaryâ??s strict approach should instil confidence among the public.

However, he also launched a sharp attack on leaders of the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC), alleging that at the initial stage of the case, some had indulged in appeasement politics by supporting anti-national elements.

The BJP leader further warned that such attitudes, which he described as standing with anti-national elements for political gain, pose a serious threat to internal security.

Reiterating his partyâ??s position, Vijayendra asserted that terrorism has no religion and that there can be no forgiveness for acts of terror or those who support them.

It can be recalled that in December 2022, Deputy Chief Minister and State Congress President D.K. Shivakumar had stirred significant controversy by questioning the official labelling of the Mangaluru cooker blast as a "terror act".

Shivakumar alleged that the then-ruling BJP government was using the cooker blast, which occurred in an autorickshaw, to divert attention from a voter data theft scandal in Bengaluru. He questioned how the police could declare the suspect a terrorist without a full investigation.

/IANS