PALAKKAD: The Kerala police on Wednesday arrested the man who tied the BJP flag on the bust of Mahatma Gandhi inside the Palakkad municipality premises.
Bijesh, 29, a native of Kalimadaparambu in Thirunellai, Palakkad, was arrested from his house for his role in the incident.
Police said he was a mentally unstable person. However, the BJP contested the police claim.
BJP district president E Krishnadas, who is also the vice-chairman of the Palakkad municipality, said he met the man at the police station and spoke to him for 15 minutes. The accused answered all the questions he asked, Krishnadas said, adding that he gathered from the talk that the man was mentally very stable.
According to him, the accused appeared to be coming from a poor financial background.
"A person scales the compound wall (of the municipal office), walks to the bust, climbs the ladder, and ties the flag to the bust of Gandhi. He later comes down the ladder and looks at the bust to see if the job was done satisfactorily. How can such a person be mentally unstable?" he asked.
He alleged that the police are trying to protect the persons behind the incident and wanted the call details of the accused's phone to be published and investigated.
"There is a deep-rooted conspiracy in the incident and the perpetrators of the crime should be brought to book," Krishnadas said.