The arrest of a right wing activist for illegal possession of ammunition triggered reports on Friday that the State police had cracked the murder of Gauri Lankesh.
Acting on a tip-off, sleuths from the Organised Crime Wing of the Central Crime Branch, Bengaluru police arrested K.T. Naveen Kumar, 37, hailing from Maddur and a resident of Birur in Chikkamagaluru district, in Upparpete police limits on Sunday.
The police recovered five live bullets of a .32 revolver from his backpack. A case under the Arms Act was booked at Upparpete police station and, on Monday, CCB sleuths got 9-day custody of the accused.
The police team probing the case took the accused to Birur and recovered 10 more live bullets.
A senior officer said, “The accused often boasted of possessing arms and ammunition, but has no record of illegal arms trade. He is known to harbour extreme right wing sympathies, and founded the Hindu Yuva Sene in 2015.”
M.N. Anucheth, Investigating Officer, Special Investigation Team, clarified that the arrest was not made in connection with the Gauri Lankesh case and they are yet to question the accused.
According to an officer, "The SIT has been questioning illegal arm traders. We may question Naveen as well. But he was not on our radar."
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Belthangady: Another incident involving individuals allegedly dancing indecently, dressed in a denigrating manner, and insulting the Azan (Islamic call to prayer) has come to light under the jurisdiction of the Venoor Police Station. A case has been lodged against 17 accused persons and 20 to 30 others who were allegedly involved in the act.
Based on a complaint filed by Mohammed Rafiq, a resident of Poyyegudde house in Padangady village, a case has been registered at Venoor police station against Savya residents Vasantha, Rajesh, Harish, Peradi residents Dayanand, Ranganath, Mohan, Shamit, Ravi, Ramesh Kulal, Suresh, Ashoka Kulal, Dhanush Haradottu, Harish Banthottu, Ramesh R.K, Suresh Barottu, Pramod, Prakash Peradi and 20 to 30 other individuals.
A case has been registered under Section 353(2) along with Section 3(5) Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita 2023 for disrespecting Islam, Prophet Muhammad and the Islamic prayer Azhan by wearing Muslim attire during a 'Purusha Kattuna' event on April 14th.
A video of the incident is reportedly circulating on various social media platforms. In the purported video, a group of individuals can be seen wearing traditional Muslim attire and allegedly insulting the Azan by dancing indecently during a 'Purusha Kattuna' (a ritualistic dance performed by men of different castes, typically marking the end of agricultural activities) event held in Peradi near Venoor.
This incident follows a similar episode reported just days ago during a Purushara Puja ceremony, where Islam was allegedly disrespected. A complaint had already been filed with the Venoor police regarding that incident.
Leaders from the Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI) had also approached the Venoor police and submitted an official complaint, and demanded immediate action against those who are responsible for creating unrest in the society by wearing Muslim attire and hurting religious sentiments.
The Venoor police have now registered a case following widespread outrage over the alleged video denigrating Islam.