No language link in the murder of 22-year-old in Bengaluru: CID

Leaders of the ruling BJP had alleged that the man, who was fatally stabbed on April 4, was murdered for not speaking in Urdu.

The Karnataka Criminal Investigation Department (CID) has ruled out language as the motive behind the murder of a 22-year-old man, who was stabbed to death on April 4, senior officers probing the case said.

The murder took place in the JJ Nagar police station limits around midnight on April 4. (Representational photo)

Leaders of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) had alleged that the man, identified as Chandru, was murdered for not speaking in Urdu. The Bengaluru police, however, called it a case of road rage.

Three suspects, including a minor, arrested for the murder spoke fluent Kannada and the evidence collected during the probe concurs with the Bengaluru police’s finding that road rage led to the murder, two senior CID officers told HT, requesting anonymity. “We have recorded the statements of the accused in the case and also of Chandru’s friend who was with him at the time of the murder,” one of the officers cited above said. “All of them said the murder took place because the accused’s motorcycle hit Chandru’s scooter.”

The murder took place in the JJ Nagar police station limits around midnight on April 4. According to the police, Chandru and his friend Simon Raj were returning from an eatery on the Mysore Road when their bike collided with another two-wheeler, which was being ridden by one of the accused, identified as Shahid Pasha.

The collision led to a quarrel and during the fight, Shahid stabbed Chandru in his right thigh and fled. Chandru was rushed to Victoria hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries, police said. Within hours, police arrested Shahid Pasha (21), Shahid Goli (22) and a minor. Police narrowed down on the suspects based on CCTV footage and information gathered from the area.

The suspects in the case have been booked on charges of murder and criminal intimidation. While two accused are in judicial custody, the minor has been sent to juvenile home.

However, the murder took a communal turn when Karnataka home minister Araga Jnanendra alleged that the youth was killed for not speaking in Urdu. Even though the home minister later withdrew his statement, BJP national general secretary CT Ravi accused the Bengaluru police of “pressurising” Jnanendra to hide the “truth” behind the murder. The probe was then handed over to CID.

“One of the main reasons the case was transferred to the CID was to identify whether the allegation that the murder took place over Chandru’s inability to speak Urdu. We have not only spoken to the accused but also those who knew Chandru. We have found that the accused in the case spoke Kannada, and Chandru had a working knowledge of Hindi. We are currently in the process of collecting further evidence for filing the charge sheet,” said a second CID officer, who also wished not to be named.

A day after the Karnataka government handed over the investigation to CID on April 19, senior police officers in the city told HT that the BJP was trying to discredit the police officers for political reasons. BJP leaders had claimed that Bengaluru police were trying to change the narrative of the case and alleged that the city police commissioner, Kamal Pant, had “lied” about the incident.

A senior IPS officer in the city police, requesting anonymity, said there was an “attempt to communalise” the incident and the CID’s findings back up the Bengaluru police’s investigation. The officer said the Bengaluru police’s probe into the case was thorough. “The CCTV footage was available and based on some questioning, the police were able to track the suspects within hours. While the arrest happened around noon, by evening some social media posts were trying to communalise the issue. Soon after, an officer was dispatched to probe the allegation that the murder took place as the victim did not speak Urdu,” said the officer.

“A senior officer was sent to take a statement from the victim’s friend Simon Raj who was with the deceased at the time of the murder. When police asked if the murder took place because he couldn’t speak Urdu, Raj said no. The CID has found the same,” added the officer.

On April 21, Simon Raj had told HT that the provocation for the attack was the collision of the bikes. “We were returning from a bakery when the bike collided with us. After the accident, the man accused Chandru of passing derogatory remarks. We kept telling them that we had said nothing. They were speaking in Urdu and we were speaking in Kannada. At one point there was some pushing, and then two more people joined him (the attacker) and they stabbed Chandru,” Raj had said.