K’taka HC grants conditional bail to Puneeth Kerehalli, four others in Idrees Pasha Murder case
Bengaluru: In a recent update, the Karnataka High Court has granted conditional bail to Puneeth Kerehalli and four other individuals involved in the murder case of Idrees Pasha, a cattle transporter. The accused, who had been evading arrest, were apprehended in Rajasthan on April 5. The bail order was issued by Justice MG Uma, who presided over a vacation bench and considered three separate petitions submitted by the defendants.
Puneeth Kerehalli and his co-accused were charged by the Ramanagara police for their alleged participation in the murder of Idrees Pasha. The charges against them include Sections 302 (Murder), 341 (Wrongful Restraint), and 504 (Intentional Insult with Intent to Provoke Breach of the Peace) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), based on a complaint lodged by Pasha's family members.
The tragic incident occurred when Idrees Pasha and his two associates were intercepted by cow vigilantes in Sathanur village, of Ramanagara district. Idrees Pasha lost his life during the incident, purportedly at the hands of Hindutva extremists. Furthermore, one of his companions suffered physical assault.
During the court proceedings, Advocate Arun Shyam, representing the petitioner, highlighted that the post-mortem examination of Idrees Pasha's body revealed only minor scratches, with no significant injuries reported. The advocate argued that crucial information regarding the location of the deceased's body, approximately 100 meters away from the Sathanur police station, should have been communicated to the police at an earlier stage.
Compelling videos shared on social media allegedly show Puneeth Kerehalli engaging in "cow vigilante" activities, employing a stun gun to inflict pain. Burn marks were also discovered on Idrees Pasha's body. Puneeth Kerehalli has been photographed alongside prominent leaders of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Karnataka. The First Information Report (FIR) indicates that Pasha possessed valid documentation confirming the legality of the cattle he was transporting from the local market. Nevertheless, Puneeth and his associates allegedly continued to intimidate him, demanding a ransom of Rs 2 lakh for his release, while issuing threats to his life if the demanded amount was not paid.
The conditional bail granted by the Karnataka High Court to Puneeth Kerehalli and the four co-accused marks a significant development in the ongoing case. The court proceedings will persist, and further investigations will be conducted to ascertain all relevant details and gather additional evidence. The outcome of this case will be closely monitored, as it holds implications for justice and the efforts to address vigilantism in the state.
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Davanagere South bypoll: Cong Muslim leaders allege internal conspiracy to defeat party candidate
Bengaluru (PTI): A rift within the Karnataka Congress surfaced on Friday, a day after the bypolls to two Assembly constituencies in the state, as a group of Muslim leaders alleged a "conspiracy" by some of their own senior party leaders to defeat the official candidate in Davanagere South.
However, they asserted that despite efforts by some within to project that Congress "betrayed" Muslims, the party candidate Samarth Mallikarjun will win in Davanagere South, the constituency where the community has a significant presence.
Chief Whip in the Legislative Council Saleem Ahmed, MLAs Rizwan Arshad, Yasir Ahmed Khan Pathan, MLC Bilkis Bano, and other Congress leaders addressed a joint press conference regarding this at the party office here.
"It is a sad thing that some senior leaders of our own party have conspired to defeat the Congress, despite this minorities have voted for the Congress. KPCC President (D K Shivakumar), the Chief Minister (Siddaramaiah) and the AICC General Secretary (Randeep Singh Surjewala) are aware of this. People have voted for Congress, its ideology and its five guarantee schemes," Ahmed said.
Noting that Samath Mallikarjun was given a ticket after taking all minority leaders of the party into confidence and following their consent, he said, "But after that because of some misconceptions, conspiracies have been hatched. But still, I'm confident that Congress candidate Samarth will win".
According to party sources, these Muslim leaders have also complained to AICC and state party leadership regarding attempts for "internal sabotage" in Davanagere South.
Though the leaders did not indicate who they were accusing. Several party sources said their attack was directed at Housing Minister B Z Zameer Ahmed Khan, among a few others.
Khan, who had openly demanded the Davanagere South ticket for a Muslim candidate, had initially stayed away from campaigning in the segment, citing his Kerala poll responsibilities. However, he addressed a press meet along with Samarth's father and Minister SS Mallikarjun at the request of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah.
MLA Arshad said that there was a massive social media campaign against the Congress party, by the BJP, SDPI and Independents, alleging "betrayal" of the minorities by the Congress. Some within the party, too, tried to project the same.
"We indeed demanded a ticket for the minority, and the party considered it. However, since we, as minority leaders, had to provide a unanimous candidate, we only put forward Abdul Jabbar's name because he is the MLC from the region, and he also pressured us. I think we first failed there, as ground-level party workers did not accept it and some other leaders believed he wasn't that popular," he said.
Arshad noted that the party finally named Samarth Mallikarjun as the candidate "after considering all factors and taking all Muslim leaders into confidence".
"However, some of us Muslim leaders who worked for the party's official candidate were projected as anti-Muslim on social media," he claimed.
Some leaders who accepted the party's decision to nominate Samarth as the party candidate during the meeting called to decide it later showed indirect signs of resistance, he said. "An attempt was made by others, including some within the Congress, to project that the Congress has betrayed the Muslims. This has caused us pain."
Bypolls for Davanagere South were held along with Bagalkot on Thursday. The election was necessitated following the death of sitting MLAs Shamanur Shivashankarappa and H Y Meti respectively.
Muslim disgruntlement appears to be a concern for the Congress in Davanagere South. With 14 of the 25 candidates in the fray belonging to the community, there are apprehensions within the party about a split in votes, which could benefit the BJP.
Given its significant presence in the constituency, the Muslim community strongly demanded the Congress ticket for Davanagere South. Some party factions had opposed giving the ticket to the Shamanur family.
Although the Congress was successful in persuading rebel candidate Sadiq Pailwan to withdraw from the contest, he remained in the fray as the move came after the deadline for withdrawal of nominations.
