Bommai: NIA to probe BJP worker’s murder
Karnataka chief minister Basavaraj Bommai on Friday announced that the government has decided to hand over the investigation into the murder of BJP worker Praveen Nettaru to the National Investigation Agency (NIA).
Talking to media persons in Bengaluru, the CM said police have been asked to take the required steps for the state to send the proposal for an NIA probe.
A senior police officer in Karnataka said a case under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) will be registered in due course.
“In the backdrop of the murder having inter-state connections, it was decided to hand over the case to the NIA,” chief minister Bommai said.
“There is a suspicion that Nettaru’s murder is connected to organised crime and inter-state nexus. After collecting all the information, a letter will be written to Kerala,” Bommai added.
Two men with suspected links to the Popular Front of India (PFI) have been arrested in connection with the murder of a 32-year-old Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM) leader in Karnataka’s Dakshina Kannada district, police said on Thursday, adding that they were nabbed in Kerala’s Kasargod district.
The arrested accused have been identified as Zakir (29) from Savanuru in Haveri district and Mohammed Shafiq (27) from Bellare village, where the Yuva Morcha district executive committee member Nettaru was hacked to death by unidentified bike-borne assailants on Tuesday night, said Dakshina Kannada superintendent of police (SP) Rishikesh Sonawane.
At least 15 people have been questioned so far and some are still in detention, the SP said.
“Right now, we are looking into all aspects, we will be looking into involvement of others, motive and other matters,” Sonawane said, adding that arrests have been made based on the evidence available and current investigation.
Nettaru, a resident of Bellare in Dakshina Kannada, was attacked by bike-borne assailants when he was returning home after closing his poultry shop late on Tuesday evening.
The incident triggered protests in several parts of the district on Wednesday with instances of stone pelting being reported in some areas.
The two accused were detained on Wednesday evening and placed under arrest on Thursday, said additional director general of police (law and order) Alok Kumar.
“Both have got suspected links with PFI — that we have to verify. We took them into custody on Wednesday and after inquiry we have arrested them. We will produce them before court and ask for police custody and do further investigation,” Kumar said.
The SP said that one of the accused Zakir already has a case registered against him in Bellare police station in 2020 for an offence under Section 324 (voluntarily causing hurt by dangerous weapons or means) of the Indian Penal Code.
While the police officials are yet to confirm if the two arrested men murdered Praveen or if they were part of the conspiracy, officers from the Dakshina Kannada police said that the investigators have established a timeline of events in the lead-up to murder.
Based on the CCTV footage, a copy of which HT has seen, police have identified the twowheeler with Kerala registration number allegedly used by the assailants for killing Nettaru, a senior officer said.