Bengaluru: In connection with the serial murder allegations said to have occurred in Dharmasthala village of Belthangady taluk, Dakshina Kannada district, and pertaining to Criminal Case No. 39/2025 under Section 211(A) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), the Karnataka state government has constituted a Special Investigation Team (SIT) comprising four IPS officers for a comprehensive probe.

The government officially issued the order on Saturday (July 19), transferring the case to the SIT. Dr. Pronab Mohanty, Director General of Police (DGP) of the Internal Security Division of the state, has been appointed as the head of this Special Investigation Team.

Other members of the SIT:

* M.N. Anucheth, Deputy Inspector General of Police, Recruitment Division
* Soumya Latha, Deputy Commissioner of Police, Central Armed Reserve (CAR)
* Jitendra Kumar Dayama, Superintendent of Police, Internal Security Division

According to the government order, the SIT will carry out an impartial and detailed investigation into the case registered at Dharmasthala Police Station as well as any other related or future cases filed in police stations across the state concerning this issue. The SIT is also directed to submit its report to the government at the earliest.

Earlier, the Karnataka State Women’s Commission had written to the government demanding the formation of a Special Investigation Team for an impartial and thorough investigation.

The Women’s Commission had specifically requested a high-level SIT to probe cases involving missing women and girl students, unnatural deaths or murders, and sexual assault incidents that have reportedly occurred in the Dharmasthala region over the past 20 years.

The government order cites the issues raised in the Women’s Commission's letter and the case registered at Dharmasthala Police Station (Cr. No. 39/2025 under BNS Section 211(A)), and concludes that it is appropriate to constitute a Special Investigation Team (SIT) for an in-depth and impartial inquiry.

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Srinagar (PTI): Property worth Rs 1 crore belonging to a notorious drug peddler was on Saturday attached in Jammu and Kashmir's Srinagar, police said.

A double-storey house on eight marlas of land situated at Wantpora Eidgah, belonging to Basit Bilal Dar, a notorious drug peddler, valued at approximately Rs 1 crore, a police spokesperson said.

He said Dar is involved in two cases registered under various sections of the NDPS Act.

During investigation, it was established that the accused had acquired the said property through illicit proceeds generated from drug trafficking activities, the spokesperson said.

Consequently, the property was attached under the provisions of the NDPS Act. The attachment proceedings were conducted in the presence of the two independent witnesses, strictly in accordance with the prescribed legal procedures, he said.

As per the attachment order, the owner has been restrained from selling, leasing, transferring, altering, or creating any third-party interest in the property till further orders, the spokesperson added.