Coming down heavily on the BJP government in Karnataka in the wake of Mangalore incidents, Women and Child Development Minister Renuka Chowdhury on Saturday said there was a ‘breakdown’ of law and order in the state where ‘Talibanisation’ is happening.

"All instruments of democracy will be used to stop such incidents,” she said commenting on Friday's kidnapping of the daughter of a Kerala MLA and her Muslim male friend from a bus in Mangalore by activists of Sri Ram Sene.

"The state government is not in control of the law and order situation. Talibanisation is happening. There is a clean communal divide where a Hindu girl is prevented from talking to a Muslim boy, it is a very dangerous trend," the Minister said.

"There is a breakdown of law and order in Karnataka and I think we should look at it as a national security problem," she said.

Asked why the Centre was not intervening, Chowdhury said the government is ‘respecting the Centre-state ties’ but nobody should think that it is ‘weak or cannot do anything’.

"We are repeatedly warning the state government that they should take cognizance. When it is necessary we will take a step," the Minister said.

Referring to the recent attack by Sene activists on women in a Mangalore pub, she said the issue should not be diluted by saying that it is only about ‘pub culture’.

"It is a much deeper rot. Today it is a pub, tomorrow if you are sitting in the staircase in front of your house, they will come and slap you. It is fascism, there is an attempt to spread an ideology of hatred in Karnataka, an attempt to bring a communal divide," Chowdhury said.

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