Prakash Raj Hits Mute Button as His Links to MLA Haris' Son Return to Haunt Him

Bengaluru: The incident of Karnataka Congress MLA NA Haris’ son Mohammad Nalapad brutally attacking a youth at an upscale city restaurant seems to have “silenced” an otherwise vocal critic of PM Narendra Modi and BJP — Prakash Raj — for the time being. The famous actor Prakash Raj (Prakash Rai in Kannada) has gone into a silent mode after the attack led to a nationwide outrage and a video linking him to the tainted Nalapad surfaced, causing much embarrassment to him and his supporters.

In a video, the actor-turned-activist can be seen praising Mohammad Nalapad — calling him a very good boy and that his father has brought him up well — at a public function held sometime last January. The actor was also seen profusely thanking Nalapad for giving money to his NGO to build houses for the poor. His critics took to Twitter minutes after the ghastly incident was reported by News18, to “expose” Prakash Raj’s links to the Congress MLA’s son.

A red-faced Prakash Raj, in a tweet, condemned the incident and demanded strict action against the culprits. But this could not put an end to the barrage of tweets and Facebook posts demanding him to publicly apologize and return Nalapad’s money.

Pictures of Raj sharing a drink with Nalapad have also emerged and his critics are gleefully sharing them on social media. A day after the brawl, Prime Minister Narendra Modi was in Karnataka to address BJP’s election rally in Mysore. As expected, he attacked the Congress government but this time, Prakash Raj did not react at all.

A day later, BJP national president Amit Shah, too, landed in Mangalore, the actor’s hometown. Again, Prakash Raj pressed the mute button.

On Monday, Union Minister of State for Skill Development, Ananthkumar Hegde’s aide filed a police complaint against Prakash Raj for allegedly spreading falsehood against him in the social media. But the actor’s response was mild, lacking his usual firepower.

Karnataka BJP spokesperson, S Prakash did not waste any time and ridiculed Prakash Raj by calling him a “revolutionary” leader. He said, “Prakash Raj has praised the goonda son of MLA Haris to the skies just because he has given his NGO some money. It proves that he will praise anyone if someone pays him money. He is a hypocrite. He has no right to criticize PM Modi or BJP.”

Not surprisingly, Raj’s cheerleaders, too, have hit the mute button ever since the brawl in Bengaluru a few days ago.