An alleged activist of the right-wing Bajrang Dal has been arrested in connection with the December 5 murder of Congress worker Ganesh Gowda at Sakarayapatna in Kadur taluk of Karnataka’s Chikamagaluru district.
Story continues below this ad
Ganesh Gowda, 30, a gram panchayat member and president of the local Vokkaligara Sangha, was hacked to death after he was allegedly lured to a settlement meeting held over a clash that occurred earlier in the day at the Sakarayapatna bus stand with a group of alleged Bajrang Dal workers.
The Chikamagaluru police arrested Mithun, 28, over the Congress worker’s murder, while two key accused named in the FIR are in hospital under police watch after they allegedly suffered injuries in the clash at the town bus stand on December 5, before the murder later in the night.
Story continues below this ad
According to a police complaint filed on December 6 by Varun Gowda, a nephew of the Congress worker, he received a call at around 9.30 pm on December 5 where Ganesh Gowda spoke about being attacked by a group near the bus stand and asked for some of his associates to be sent to the site of the incident.
Later, at around 10 pm, Ganesh Gowda was seen driving towards the Kalamurudi Math with a friend, Sandeep. Gowda’s body was found later lying near his car on a narrow road near the Kalamurudi Math.
Sandeep, who managed to evade the attack and has been hospitalised with injuries, has reported that their car was attacked by a group of assailants when they entered the narrow road to the Math and that Ganesh Gowda was murdered.
Story continues below this ad
A day after the murder, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said the police would leave no stone unturned to bring the Congress worker’s killers to justice. “The killers and the conspirators involved in the murder will be brought to book and will be punished to the maximum as per the law by the government in order for justice to be provided,” Siddaramaiah said on social media.
The FIR has named Sanjay Gowda, Nithin, Nagabhushan, Darshan and Ajay as the accused people. Mithun’s arrest followed investigations of the phone calls of the accused people on the night of the murder.
While Sanjay Gowda and Nithin are in the hospital, the other accused are reportedly absconding. The entire group is allegedly associated with the Bajrang Dal, which has a strong presence in the district.
The first clash, at the bus stand, is alleged to have occurred over the removal of a poster on a shrine in the region that is revered by followers of different religions. This aspect is, however, not a part of the FIR in the case.