New Delhi: Tension prevailed at several places in Dakshina Kannada district on Wednesday with instances of stone-pelting and police lathicharge being reported following the murder of a Bharatiya Janata Party Yuva Morcha member.
The Sangh Parivar has called for a bandh in Puttur, Kadaba and Sullia taluk in protest against the murder.
A video shared by news agency ANI showed BJP MP and state party president Nalin Kumar Kateel’s car being jolted by a crowd of protesters as he arrived at Bellare.
#WATCH | Protestors express their anger over the murder of BJP Yuva Morcha worker Praveen Nettaru in Bellare, Dakshina Kannada.
The car being jolted by protesters reportedly belongs to Dakshina Kannada MP Nalinkumar Kateel#Karnataka pic.twitter.com/J4HyBZr0br
— ANI (@ANI) July 27, 2022
Police are understood to have baton-charged stone pelters there.
#WATCH | Police lathi-charge those protesting against the murder of BJP Yuva Morcha worker Praveen Nettar in Bellare of Dakshin Kannada district#Karnataka pic.twitter.com/oun3ciZbVm
— ANI (@ANI) July 27, 2022
Dakshina Kannada district in-charge minister Sunil Kumar and RSS leader Kalladka Prabhakar Bhat have also visited Bellare, PTI has reported.
Praveen Nettar, a Zilla BJP Yuva Morcha committee member was hacked to death in front of his broiler shop in Bellare by three bike-borne miscreants on Tuesday night.
A resident of Nettaru in Bellare in Dakshina Kannada district, he was heading home after closing his shop. “He tried to escape and ran but he fell down after a blow on his head,” police said.
Local residents immediately informed the police, who rushed to the spot and took Nettar to the hospital. Doctors declared him brought dead.
Incidents of stone-pelting at government buses were reported from some places. A bus plying from Puttur to Mangaluru was damaged in the stone-pelting incident at Bolwar.
Meanwhile, the body of the deceased BJP worker was taken in a procession in an ambulance to Nettaru by members of Sangh organisations.
Police have registered a case of murder at Bellare police station and have formed four teams to investigate in different angles and to nab the murderers.
Condemning the killing, Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai on Wednesday assured that the culprits involved in the “heinous act” will be arrested soon and be punished as per law.
Later speaking to reporters, Bommai said since the incident took place close to Kerala border, Karnataka police is in contact with its counterpart there.
“Superintendent of Police, Mangaluru is in touch with his counterpart in Kasaragod, and DG of the state has spoken to DG Kerala…we will nab them soon, we have taken this seriously,” he said.
At the outset it appears to be “pre planned” and there are similarities with other cases, which are being studied in entirety, the CM further said, adding, “We will go to the roots.”
Condemning the killing, leader of opposition in Karnataka and former chief minister Siddaramaiah asked police to take action against the perpetrators without any “biases”.
Another former chief minister and JD(S) leader H.D. Kumaraswamy, questioning as to when this string of killings would end, asked about the BJP government’s inaction after the similar killing of Bajrang Dal activist Harsha in Shivamogga in February.
(With PTI inputs)