3 held for poisoning school water to oust Muslim headmaster in Karnataka: Police

Sagar Patil, area president of Hindu right-wing group Sri Ram Sena, wanted Muslim headmaster to face charges; CM says could've led to massacre

Belagavi: Three people, including a Hindu right-wing group’s leader, were arrested for allegedly poisoning the drinking water tank of a government school in Belagavi district of Karnataka to oust the school’s Muslim headmaster, police said.

Eleven students from the Kannada-medium government school in Hullikatti village of Belagavi fell ill and were hospitalised on July 20. (Representative photo)

Eleven students from the Kannada-medium government school in Hullikatti village of Belagavi fell ill and were hospitalised on July 20. During the investigation, it came to light that pesticide was mixed into the school’s drinking water tank, a police officer said.

Three people — Sagar Patil, Krishna Madar, and Magangouda Patil — were detained by the police on August 1.

During interrogation, they told the cops that they had contaminated the school’s drinking water supply in an effort to transfer the school’s Muslim headmaster.

“Sagar Patil, the Savadatti taluk president of (Hindu right-wing group) Sri Ram Sena, wanted the Muslim headmaster to face serious charges leading to his transfer. To carry out the plan, he enlisted the help of Madar by blackmailing him over his relationship with a person from another community,” Belagavi superintendent of police (SP) Bhimashankar Guled said on Saturday.

The three had allegedly purchased pesticide from a shop in Munavalli village on July 18.

“To execute the plan, the accused roped in a student related to Patil and offered him ₹500 and snacks to mix the pesticide into the school’s water tank,” SP Guled said.

“To prevent the student from identifying the substance, the pesticide was transferred into a plastic soft drink bottle. After mixing it into the water inside the tank, the boy discarded the bottle nearby,” the SP said, adding that the bottle was a key piece of evidence that helped investigators uncover the crime.

Police traced the shopkeeper from whom the pesticide was purchased. “Based on the shopkeeper’s account, the three accused were detained. During interrogation, they confessed to the conspiracy and were arrested,” Guled added.

The accused have been booked under Section 123 (causing hurt by means of poison) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and are remanded to judicial custody.

Karnataka chief minister Siddaramaiah on Sunday condemned the incident, describing it as a “heinous act” rooted in communal hatred.

“Religious fundamentalism and communal hatred can lead to heinous acts, and this incident, which could have resulted in the massacre of innocent children, is a testament to that,” Siddaramaiah wrote in a post in Kannada on X.

(With PTI inputs)