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Karnataka home minister says locals are behind killing of BJP member
Talking about the probe, Karnataka home minister Araga Jnanendra said that the Karnataka police are in constant touch with their counterparts in Kerala regarding the case.
Karnataka home minister Araga Jnanendra said on Saturday that those involved in the murder of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Praveen Nettaru in Dakshina Kannada district were local residents, and efforts are on to nab them.
Nettaru (32), a Zilla Bharatiya Yuva Morcha committee member, was hacked to death by unidentified bike-borne assailants on July 26 night at Bellare in Dakshina Kannada district.
A day after the murder, Jnanendra said that the assailants involved in Nettaru’s murder could have come from Kerala.
The Karnataka police had also sent teams to the neighbouring state to probe the matter.
On Saturday, however, Jnanendra told reporters in Shivamogga: “Nettaru’s killers are from Mangaluru (Dakshina Kannada) district limits and will be arrested in two to three days.”
He added that the accused belong to “one community” and alerts have been issued to the airports across South India to catch the accused in case of an attempt to escape.
“Police are conducting an inquiry into all the angles, including their background, to which organisation they belong and are making all the efforts to nab them,” he added.
Talking about the probe, the home minister said that the Karnataka police are in constant touch with their counterparts in Kerala regarding the case.
While the police have not released any statement on the case, an official familiar with the probe said that the murders have been identified and will be arrested soon. “We suspect that Praveen’s murder was a retaliation to the killing of Masood, who was murdered on July 19. He was chosen as a target following the controversy over halal cut and jhatka cut in the state,” the officer said.
