Mangaluru auto blast suspect Shariq’s house raided; he was previously booked under UAPA

News Network
November 20, 2022

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Mangaluru/ Mysuru, Nov 20: The Karnataka police today conducted searches at the house of a youth who suffered severe injuries in a blast in a moving auto rickshaw in Mangaluru last night. The injured, who is also the prime suspect in the blast case, was reportedly staying in Mysuru. 

According to the police, the accused took the one-room accommodation on rent last month. He had told the house owner that he was in the city for "mobile repair training".

Preliminary investigation indicates Mohammed Shariq, 24, hailing from Teerthahalli he has terror links. He had previously been booked under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) for graffiti on walls in Mangaluru. He was out on bail in the case. He was also absconding in a terror case and was wanted by the police.

Police have verified his photos in their records and his family has also identified the injured person in the hospital as Mohammed Shariq, via a phone, and are on their way to the hospital, a senior police official said.

Shivamogga stabbing case

Probing a stabbing incident in Shivamogga around Independence Day over putting up a photo of V. D. Savarkar, Shivamogga Rural Police had busted an alleged terror module with alleged links to Islamic State. Police had arrested Maaz Muneer Ahmed, 22 and Syed Yasin, 21 and recovered explosive materials from the duo.

Investigations had uncovered that they were radicalised by Mohammed Shariq and they had learnt making bombs through PDF files, videos and several materials sent to them by Shariq. The duo had prepared an IED and tested it successfully on the banks of Tungabhadra, police had alleged. However, Shariq had fled from his residence and had been absconding till date. 

Mohammed Shariq and Maaz Ahmed were earlier arrested by Mangaluru City Police in 2020 over graffiti they wrote on the walls of two buildings in the coastal city, in support of Lashakr-e-Taiba and Taliban, and were later released on bail. Maaz Ahmed was again busted in the terror module case in Sepetmber 2022, even as Shariq the prime accused in the case was at large. 

Links to Al Hind IS module

Mohammed Shariq is said to be associated with Matheen Ahmed Taha, also hailing from Shivamogga and a member of Al Hind IS module, active in Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. The Bengaluru-based Al Hind IS module was allegedly put together by Mehboob Pasha, a resident of Gurappana Palya, Bengaluru and Khaja Moideen, a resident of Cuddalore, Tamil Nadu, accused in several murder cases of Hindutva leaders in the neighbouring state.

The module was busted by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) in 2020 and chargesheets filed in 2021, alleging the group wanted to establish an IS province inside the jungles of South India. However, Matheen Ahmed Taha, a prominent member of this group, is still at large and Mohammed Shariq is suspected to be his associate.

The blast occurred on Saturday evening inside an autorickshaw, near a police station, leaving the passenger and the driver injured. Both have been admitted to the hospital. The police said inside the vehicle, they found a burnt pressure cooker fitted with batteries, which Shareeq was apparently carrying. The pressure cooker, the police said, was a low-intensity Improvised Explosive device or IED.

‘Not well enough to give a statement’

This morning, the police confirmed that it was "an act of terror with intention to cause serious damage". The Karnataka police are investigating it along with central agencies.

The police said Shareeq is not well enough to give a statement. The auto driver, who was also injured, is in the hospital.

Shareeq was also carrying an Aadhaar card which did not belong to him, the police said. The owner of the card has been located. Premraj Hutagi, a resident of Karnataka's Hubballi district, has said he had lost the card and had acquired a duplicate.

Citing the "stolen" Aadhaar card, the police said it gives them a "fair idea that he was planning to target something, but we don't know what". "We are not ruling out his having a connection with the recent Coimbatore blast," said state police chief Praveen Sood. 

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News Network
March 15,2023

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Bengaluru, Mar 15: Karnataka Congress President DK Shivakumar today sought the arrest of Praveen Sood, the state's Director General of Police. The Congress leader claimed that the DGP had been protecting the ruling BJP government and filing cases against leaders from his party.

"This DGP is nalayak (useless). Immediately, there should be a case against him. And he should be arrested. The election commission should remove him," Mr Shivakumar said.

"He has finished three years in service. How many days do you want to keep and worship him? He has been filing cases only against Congress. He has registered more than 25 cases against us," he added.

He said that Congress will take action against him if they come back to power. Elections to the 224-member Karnataka assembly are set to be held before May 2023.

The Congress has set a target of winning at least 150 seats in the 224-member Assembly, to come to power in Karnataka, with a clear majority.

While JD(S) has already announced the first list of 93 candidates for Assembly polls, BJP and Congress are yet to announce their list.

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News Network
March 18,2023

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Udupi, Mar 18: A ghastly road mishap involving a truck and a car claimed the life of a lecturer of a private engineering college at Honnavar in Uttara Kannada district.  

The deceased is identified as Anantesha Rao (45). He is survived by wife Sripriya Anantesh, principal of a private college in Mangaluru and a son.

It is learnt that Rao’s car collided with a container truck at Honnavar when he was travelling to Sode Moola Mutt from Udupi. Rao died on the spot due to excessive bleeding. 

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News Network
March 7,2023

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Karnataka High Court on Tuesday granted interim bail to BJP MLA Madal Virupakshappa, whose son was arrested by Karnataka Lokayukta police for taking a bribe of Rs 40 lakhs.

The court granted bail under the condition of Rs 5 Lakhs Bond and surety and has directed him to appear before Lokayukta within 48 hours.

Specifying that the bail order will be applicable till the disposal of the anticipatory bail petition, the court adjourned the hearing to March 17, said a Times of India report.

In an alleged cash-for-contract scandal, over Rs 8 crore was recovered by Lokayukta from the MLA's son Prashanth Madal last week. Lokayukta has registered an FIR in the alleged bribery case, in which Virupakshappa was named accused number one.

The unaccounted cash was recovered from the office of Karnataka Soaps and Detergents Limited, of which Virupakshappa was the Chairman, after a trap by Lokayukta in which his son was caught red-handed while allegedly accepting a bribe of Rs 40 lakh. The MLA subsequently quit the post.

Further searches led to the recovery of about Rs 2 crore from the KSDL office and over Rs 6 crore from Prashanth's house. Altogether Rs 8.23 crore cash, a huge quantity of gold and silver ornaments and large investments in land in various parts of Karnataka were allegedly uncovered, Lokayukta sources said as per a PTI report.

Virupakshappa has also approached a civil court in Bengaluru seeking an injunction against media houses from publishing defamatory news about him.

Congress general secretary and Karnataka in-charge Randeep Singh Surjewala on Tuesday slammed the BJP government on the bribery case. However, a counsel of BJP leaders claimed that there was no mention of Virupakshappa in the complaint. 

BJP oarsman for the upcoming Assembly election in Karnataka, BS Yeddiyurappa on Tuesday said that the party doesn't support the corruption-related incident and he asserted that the ruling BJP is not covering it up.

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