Hampi rape case: Karnataka govt to enhance security at tourist spots
Bengaluru (PTI): Karnataka Home Minister G Parameshwara on Sunday assured that security measures at tourist destinations will be significantly strengthened in the wake of recent rape of a foreign national and a homestay owner at Hampi.
The Minister also said, moving forward, tourists visiting Karnataka will be briefed on the dos and don'ts to ensure their safety.
"Definitely we are going to step up our security measures in places like Hampi and other tourist places," Parameshwara told reporters here.
He further mentioned that the government will reassess the existing security measures.
The Minister also noted that the rape of two women, including an Israeli national, is likely to affect the tourism sector.
"On the one hand we are trying to attract tourists from across the world while on the other incidents like this deter the tourists from visiting our country."
According to Parameshwara, on the night of March 6, two foreign nationals, including an Israeli citizen, along with two others, went out for stargazing on the banks of the Tungabhadra canal.
Three youths approached the group and asked for directions to a petrol pump. When the tourists expressed their unawareness, the youths robbed them.
One of the tourists had a verbal altercation with the strangers, and in a fit of anger, the men pushed the tourists into the canal. While three of the tourists managed to escape, the fourth went missing, and her body was later found.
Thr strangers allegedly raped two women. The body of the US national has been recovered, Parameshwara said adding two persons have been arrested so far in this connection.
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NEET student hangs self in Rajasthan's Sikar
Jaipur (PTI): A student preparing for the NEET examination allegedly committed suicide by hanging himself in a rented room in Rajasthan's Sikar on Friday, police said.
According to the police, the student allegedly hanged himself from a ceiling fan using his sister's scarf while one sister was attending coaching classes and the other was in the bathroom.
He had appeared in the NEET UG exam 2026, which was cancelled due to paper leak, they said.
Udyog Nagar SHO Rajesh Kumar said that the deceased, identified as Pradeep Meghwal, was a resident of Kanika ki Dhani village in Jhunjhunu's Gudha Gaudji area.
He had been living in a rented room in Sikar's Jaldhari Nagar area with his two sisters while preparing for NEET over the last three years.
His elder sister later found him hanging and informed the landlord and police after bringing him down, officials said.
The SHO said the body was kept at SK Hospital mortuary, and a postmortem had not been conducted.
The student's father, Rajesh Kumar Meghwal, told police that Pradeep's NEET examination had gone well and the family was expecting him to score around 650 marks.
Former Rajasthan deputy chief minister Sachin Pilot expressed grief over the incident and linked it to anxiety among students after reports of irregularities and paper leaks in NEET 2026.
Pilot said repeated paper leak incidents and cancellation of examinations were affecting students' mental health and demanded a time-bound investigation and strict action against those responsible.
