Man dies in police station mysteriously
Dalit organizations stage protest
Mandya, July 13: A labourer who was brought to East police station of the city for interrogation four days ago died mysteriously in the police station on Friday.
Dalit labourer Murthy (45) of Beltur village in Maddur taluk was arrested on Monday and brought to the police station for interrogation. But on Friday, he died in the police station suspiciously. Police said that Murthy committed suicide by hanging himself. However, dalit organizations and his relatives have alleged that Murthy died because of the torture of the police.
Murthy was working as mason and the police arrested him on charges of bike theft and kept him in the police station.
DSS leaders Guruprasad Keragodu, MB Srinivas, Venkatagiri Iah, MV Krishna, SD Jayaram and others rushed to the police station and expressed their anger. They asked the police as to why they have kept the person in the police station for four days. They alleged that the police have deliberately not produced him before the court. He was killed by the police, they alleged.
Judge visits station
Following the death of Murthy, principal district and sessions court judge Jyothi visited the police station and got information. Later, the body was sent to district hospital for postmortem.
DSS leaders and his relatives who staged a protest in front of the mortuary, demanded suspension of the police officers of the station and demanded suitable compensation to the family members of the deceased. They also demanded autopsy in front of the district judge.
Puttaramanna, relative of Murthy, said that Murthy was working as mason. He had three girl children. He was not involved in any theft case. “I have been visiting the police station for the last three days. But the police were telling that they have not arrested Murthy. But today, the police said that he committed suicide at the police station. Murthy died because of the torture of the police”, he said.
“Last Monday, the police have brought three of us including Murthy to the police station. During interrogation, they were beating us. Later, I was produced before the court and I have got the bail. But I don’t know anything about the death of Murthy”, said Nagaraj of Antarahalli, who was also arrested along with Murthy.
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Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah accuses EC of ‘bias’, defends state guarantee schemes ahead of bypolls
Bengaluru (PTI): Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has accused the EC of "double standards" and "bias" after it sought details on the state’s guarantee schemes in Davanagere and Bagalkot districts, where bypolls are scheduled for Thursday.
In a post on 'X' on Wednesday, Siddaramaiah said the Election Commission of India had asked the Karnataka government for information on fund releases under five ongoing guarantee schemes in the constituencies going to polls.
The polls were necessitated following the deaths of senior Congress MLAs Shamanur Shivashankarappa and H Y Meti, respectively.
The schemes are Gruha Jyothi, which provides 200 units of free electricity to every household; Gruha Lakshmi, offering Rs 2,000 to women heading families; and Anna Bhagya, supplying 10 kg of rice per month to each member of BPL families.
In addition, Yuva Nidhi grants Rs 3,000 to unemployed graduates and Rs 1,500 to unemployed diploma holders aged 18–25 for two years, while Shakti enables women to travel free of charge within Karnataka on government non-luxury buses.
Siddaramaiah alleged that the ECI had remained silent when similar cash transfer schemes were announced in Maharashtra and Bihar ahead of elections, calling the scrutiny of Karnataka’s schemes a "clear case of bias".
"In states like Maharashtra and Bihar, cash transfer schemes were announced or fast-tracked just before elections, directly benefiting voters. Yet the ECI remained silent. This is not neutrality—it is complicity," he said.
The CM accused the BJP and NDA governments of "a double standard", noting that when they act, the ECI "looks the other way", but when Karnataka fulfils its promises, it faces "intense scrutiny".
He added that targeting the state’s guarantee schemes is "not just political but anti-poor, anti-women, and anti-Karnataka."
Siddaramaiah clarified that these schemes were not launched in connection with the bypolls but are ongoing programmes implemented as part of the Congress government’s commitments from the 2023 Assembly elections.
Funds are transferred regularly to beneficiaries in a transparent and structured manner, he added.
"The guarantees are part of governance—a direct investment in human dignity, household stability, and economic participation, not inducement," he said.
He also accused the BJP of "hypocrisy", saying that while it criticises Karnataka’s schemes as "freebies", it rolls out similar programmes in states it governs.
"The Karnataka model has set a benchmark for the country. What is deeply concerning, however, is the ECI’s selective approach," Siddaramaiah added.
