NIA to probe ex-Bajrang Dal leader's murder in Karnataka
The Centre has handed over the probe into the murder of former Bajrang Dal member Suhas Shetty in Karnataka last month to the National Investigation Agency (NIA), officials aware of the matter said on Sunday.
The ministry of home affairs (MHA), in its notification dated June 7, ordered the central agency to investigate the case, citing implications on national security and the need to uncover a larger conspiracy. 'The Central Government is of the opinion that a Scheduled Offence under the National Investigation Agency Act, 2008, has been committed... and it is required to be investigated by the National Investigation Agency in accordance with the National Investigation Agency Act, 2008,' the notification said.
According to police, Suhas was travelling with five of his associates near Kinnikambla in Bajpe area of Mangaluru on the night of May 1 when their vehicle was intercepted by five-six assailants, who then dragged the 30-year-old out of the vehicle and hacked him to death.
The incident triggered communal tensions in the region, prompting authorities to impose prohibitory orders under section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS). So far, twelve people have been arrested in connection with Shetty's murder.
The Centre's decision comes a month after the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Karnataka demanded an NIA inquiry into the incident, with the party accusing the Congress-led state government of 'going soft' on the issue. 'Why is the Congress government unwilling to hand over the case to the NIA? What are they afraid of?' BJP lawmaker Captain Brijesh Chowta said on May 5, after the Congress dismissed the murder as a case of personal rivalry.
When asked about NIA taking over the probe, chief minister Siddaramaiah, on Sunday, said, 'I have asked DG and IGP MA Saleem to seek legal advice from the advocate general.'
In its notification, the MHA said that the murder appeared to be a targeted killing carried out in public to create fear, allegedly by members of the now-banned Popular Front of India (PFI).
'In this case, sections 10 r/w 41, 13, 15, 17, 18 & 20 of UA(P) Act, 1967 are attracted, as it is related to targeted killing of an individual in public view with the intention to create terror in the minds of people and the accused persons involved in the case are allegedly members of Popular Front of India (PFI), an unlawful association,' the order read.
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