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Mangaluru police arrests two for moral policing another man
Misunderstanding Abhijit to be a Muslim, the accused confronted him and questioned why he was with a Hindu girl. They then proceeded to insult and attempted to assault him, officials said
Mangaluru City Police arrested two people on Monday in connection with a moral policing incident on July 26 near a restaurant in the Kavoor police station limits, officials close to the developments said.
According to the police, Abhijit, a journalist by profession, was attacked by the two accused, Chetan Alva (37) from Kotekaru and Naveen Rai (43) from Yeyadi, while leaving a restaurant after having lunch with a female friend.
Misunderstanding Abhijit being Muslim, the accused confronted him and questioned why he was with a Hindu girl. They then proceeded to insult and attempted to assault him, officials said.
Speaking about the incident, Abhijit said that while he and his female colleague were returning to the office after lunch, the two accused stopped him, inquiring about his identity.
“While my female colleague and I were returning to the office after having lunch at a restaurant, two individuals stopped me and questioned, ‘Are you a Byari (Muslim)?’” said the complainant, Abhijit, who works for a website in Mangaluru, told HT.
“When I asked why they wanted to know my identity, they abused and threatened me. As a result, I filed a complaint with the police.”
Speaking to HT, Kavoor police station inspector B Gururaj said, “Based on the complaint, we have registered a case under sections 504 (intentional insult) and 506 (threatening with life) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) against the accused and arrested them.”
He added that the accused have no previous criminal record, and police are investigating whether they have been involved in any other such crimes.
The accused were produced before the JMFC court, which remanded them to judicial custody for 14 days.
According to people close to the matter, the establishment of an anti-communal wing in the coastal area of the state has not deterred offenders.
In Dakshina Kannada district alone, at least 4-5 moral policing incidents are reported monthly, according to police data.
Recently, two individuals were arrested for moral policing a police constable and abusing his wife in a drunken state in Bantwal of Dakshina Kannada district.
According to police constable HarishKumar, who was in Bantwal on deputation, was walking towards his government quarters with his wife and sister-in-law when the incident occurred.
The two accused on a bike followed them and questioned Kumar about the Hindu and Muslim girls accompanying him. Despite Kumar informing them that he was a policeman, they continued misbehaving and videographed his wife, police said.
The situation escalated, leading to the miscreants attacking and abusing Kumar. The police tracked down and arrested the accused, identified as Manish Pujari and Manjunath, they added.
