Former Bengaluru Police Commissioner and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Bhaskar Rao on Wednesday, 11 November 2026, wrote a sharp three-page letter to Karnataka Home Minister Priyank Kharge, urging him to prioritise the state's mounting law-and-order challenges and to refrain from making what Rao described as politically motivated statements and circulating allegedly misleading AI-generated images.

Rao, a retired Indian Police Service (IPS) officer with direct experience running Karnataka's largest police force, framed his communication as a formal appeal to uphold both the dignity of the Home Minister's office and the institutional credibility of the Karnataka Police.

Key Issues Rao Raised

In the letter, Rao outlined a detailed agenda of unresolved policing challenges he said warranted the Home Minister's urgent attention. These included the surge in drug trafficking and the growing menace of synthetic drugs, rising cybercrime and online financial fraud, communal incidents and the need for preventive policing, crimes against women and children, persistent police vacancies, training deficits, and investigation quality.

Rao also flagged concerns about alleged political interference in police functioning, the need for greater police accountability, Bengaluru city traffic mismanagement, and the state of citizen-friendly neighbourhood policing.

A Reference to Kharge's Father

'Dear Priyank Kharge Ji, please guide your department on these issues. The position of Home Minister is very senior. Your father held this position with extreme dignity,' Rao stated in the letter, invoking senior Congress leader and Mallikarjun Kharge's tenure in the same role as a benchmark of institutional conduct.

The RSS Remarks Controversy

At the heart of Rao's criticism was a reported remark attributed to Priyank Kharge — 'Sanghwalon ne maara unko' (people from the Sangh killed them) — allegedly made in connection with the murders of rationalist Dr Narendra Dabholkar, scholar Prof M.M. Kalburgi, and journalist Gauri Lankesh. Rao called the statement 'highly irresponsible,' arguing that directly attributing the killings to members of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) conflated political allegations with judicial conclusions.

'Such sweeping allegations cannot be made merely to serve political interests. Criminal investigations must be based on evidence, and guilt must be established through judicial proceedings. A person holding a responsible public office must understand the distinction between political allegations, investigative findings and judicial conclusions,' Rao said.

Rao's Broader Warning on Institutional Dignity

Rao alleged that Kharge had effectively become Karnataka's 'fake news peddler,' accusing him of spreading misinformation and using AI-generated images to target the RSS rather than concentrating on public safety. 'Karnataka deserves a Home Minister who prioritises public safety, not one who peddles fake news for political mileage. Please show maturity and statesmanship,' he said.

The former commissioner stressed that the police department must remain 'professional, impartial and accountable to the Constitution and the rule of law, irrespective of the political dispensation in power,' adding: 'Political positions are temporary, but the dignity of constitutional institutions must remain permanent. Do not sacrifice the reputation of the Home Department and Karnataka Police at the altar of political gains.'

There was no immediate official response from Priyank Kharge or the Karnataka government as of Wednesday evening. The letter adds to a continuing political confrontation between the ruling Indian National Congress (Congress) government in Karnataka and the BJP over the state's law-and-order record.