Sorry Pranita... The gut-wrenching truth behind Gokarna selfie death'!

[email protected] (Coasaldigest.com News Network)
June 3, 2016

Mangaluru, Jun 3: Contrary to media reports that the death of a law student at a beach in Uttara Kannada district last weekend was the result of her selfie craze', the eye witnesses and friends of the 21-year-old victim claimed that she was washed away by high tides while sitting on a boulder.

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Pranita Mehta from Jodhpur National Law University, holidaying with a group of friends at Gokarna drowned in Arabian Sea on May 29. Various news reports had claimed that she slipped and fell to her death while trying to take the “perfect selfie” from the top of a light house. Based on the localites' version, Coastaldigest.com report also had claimed that she lost her balance and slipped into sea from a boulder while taking selife.

However, the friends of Pranita, who were hurt by the media reports, on Friday contacted Coastaldigest.com to give the correct version of the incident.

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Kruti Venkatesh, a law student from the same university and also a close friend of Pranita, said that the latter was sitting on rocks when she was swept away by high tide unexpectedly. “She was not taking selfie. It was absolutely false report,” she said.

It is learnt that the girl was trying to fight for her life for almost half an hour. According her friends, Pranita held on to a rock and tried to swim to the shore braving the high tide, but unfortunately she was carried away deep into sea.

“Everyone created the selfie' version. None of the news reports brought to light the fact that she was struggling in the water for almost 30 minutes after being taken in by a wave,” said another friend of the victim.

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The first information report filed by the local police states that Pranita was one the five persons who visited Gokarna. From there, they went to the lighthouse on Belekan beach, where they sat on some rocks near the sea. A strong wave suddenly came and carried Pranita into the water. The friends tried to save her but in vain.

Though her friends asked local fishermen for help, it was too late. They could only pull out her body from the swirling sea waters. Gokarna was the third stop for Pranita and her friends from Rajasthan who also visited Mumbai and Goa.

Coastaldigest.com apologises for the hurt caused to the girl's family and friends by the report, which quoted the local residents instead of eye-witnesses of the incident.

Comments

Meghna
 - 
Saturday, 4 Jun 2016

Thank you for the truth! #forPranita always always always. We love you.

Arjun
 - 
Friday, 3 Jun 2016

Really sad to hear this, red this story few days back and thought that crazy girl. sorry for everything.

Janaki
 - 
Friday, 3 Jun 2016

Punsa! This one's for you. The batch of 2017 will never stop loving. #forPranita always.

Bhavana
 - 
Friday, 3 Jun 2016

Thank you CD for apologising and correcting your version. It means a lot to her friends and family.

Priyanka
 - 
Friday, 3 Jun 2016

Really Shocking!! bad luck its all about the game of god, for half an hour she was struggling and what coast guards are doing?

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News Network
December 5,2025

Mangaluru: In a significant step to curb online hate and intimidation, Mangaluru City Police have registered a suo motu case against multiple Instagram accounts accused of circulating alleged provocative and threatening content.

While monitoring social media activity on Tuesday, Kankanady Town PSI Anitha Nikkam identified the Instagram handle ‘team_targetttt_900’ for posting a hate message alongside images of lethal weapons. Another account, ‘team_nagara_900’, allegedly shared a threatening post targeting activist Bharath Kumdelu, tagging additional pages such as KARAVALI-OFFICIAL.

Several other accounts — including ‘immu_bhai.fan’, ‘target_boy_900’, ‘kings_of_manglore’, ‘team_target_boys.900’, ‘arshad_mangalore’, ‘target_ka19_ullal’, ‘team_target__’, ‘troll_tigersz_900’, ‘tr_group_900’, and ‘team_target_900’ — are also under scrutiny for spreading similar inflammatory material, police said.

Authorities have urged citizens, especially young social media users, to report suspicious pages and avoid engaging with groups that glorify violence or threaten individuals. Online hate can quickly escalate into real-world harm, and police stress that sharing or promoting such content can attract legal consequences.

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News Network
December 2,2025

Mangaluru, Dec 2: Mangaluru International Airport responded to a medical emergency late on Monday night. Air India Express flight IX 522, travelling from Riyadh to Thiruvananthapuram, was diverted to Mangaluru Airport after a passenger in his late 30s experienced a medical emergency on board.

The Airport’s Operations Control Centre received an alert regarding the passenger’s health condition. The airport activated its emergency response protocol, mobilising the airport medical team and coordinating with stakeholders including CISF, immigration, and customs. 

Upon landing, airport medical personnel attended to the passenger, assessed his condition, and arranged to shift him to a local tertiary-care hospital for further treatment. The passenger’s relatives accompanied the passenger, who incidentally received necessary medical care on board, which helped stabilise the situation.

Following the handling of the emergency, the flight departed for Thiruvananthapuram at 2:05 am on Tuesday.

"We appreciate the cooperation of all parties involved, and this incident reaffirms our ongoing commitment to prioritising passenger safety and readiness to respond to unforeseen emergencies with professionalism and care," the Airport spokesperson said. 

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News Network
December 1,2025

hindutvaboy.jpg

Udupi, Dec 1: A horrific case of alleged rape has unfolded in Udupi, where a worker from a Hindutva organisation, previously arrested and released on bail for harassing a young woman, is now accused of waylaying and sexually assaulting her.

The arrested individual has been identified as Pradeep Poojary (26), a member of the Hindu Jagarana Vedike's Nairkode unit in Perdur.

Poojary had allegedly been relentlessly harassing the young woman, pressuring her to marry him. When she bravely stood up to him and refused his demands, she filed a formal complaint at the Hiriyadka police station. He was subsequently arrested in that initial harassment case but was later granted bail.

According to police reports, driven by the same malicious grudge, Poojary allegedly intercepted the woman again on November 29. While she was walking through a deserted area, the accused is claimed to have threatened her by grabbing her neck. When she again refused to marry him, he allegedly proceeded to rape her.

The survivor immediately informed her family about the traumatic assault. Following this, her parents lodged a complaint at the Udupi women’s police station.

Police arrested Poojary again and produced him before the court. He has since been remanded to judicial custody.

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