Mysuru, Nov 19: Former Congress minister and Narasimharaja MLA Tanveer Sait, who survived a bid on his life late Sunday night here, is responding to treatment. He is out of danger.
The 52-year-old leader was attending a musical performance as part of a wedding when a man, identified as 24-year-old Maqbool alias Farhan Pasha, appeared out of nowhere, lunged towards Sait and swung a knife in the neck. As the attacker tried to flee the venue, he tripped and fell only to be caught by Sait’s supporters.
Karnataka housing minister V Somanna, who’s in charge of the district, said Sait is out of danger and he has been taken off the ventilator.
The attacker has been sent to 12-day police custody for interrogation. Police commissioner KT Balakrishna said they were verifying the alleged attacker’s antecedents, besides interrogating him to ascertain the motive behind the attack. Police are also inquiring into his alleged association with an outfit. They are questioning Farhan on how did he procure the weapon used in the attack.
Police question MLA’s gunman
A police team is also questioning the MLA’s gunman Fairoz, who was standing right behind Tanveer, for his failure to prevent the attack.
According to sources, the five-time lawmaker left home around 8.30pm but reached the wedding venue at 10pm. He blessed the couple and had dinner. Later, he went to a neighbouring stage to enjoy a musical recital.
A singer from Mumbai was performing at the venue when Sait came under attack. He was rushed to Columbia Asia where he was operated upon for nearly four hours in the wee hours of Monday to stop bleeding from the neck.
Dr Upendra Shenoy, chief of medical service, said the MLA’s condition improved since morning and he could be shifted from the ICU to a regular ward if the same level of progress is maintained in the next 48 hours. “A CT scan revealed no damage to blood vessels. He is now able to speak,” the doctor said.
After meeting Sait at the hospital, former chief minister Siddaramaiah urged the government to extend security to all MLAs from constituencies declared sensitive. He suspected the attack was to “eliminate Sait” and asked the government to set up a special team to unearth the plot. He said a thorough police investigation will reveal if Social Democratic Party of India is involved in the incident.
Abhijan, a witness, said he thought Farhan was approaching Tanveer to greet or take a selfie. An associate of Sait said the doctors were treading cautiously since he is said to be suffering from a pre-existing kidney ailment and has high blood pressure.
Sait was attending the wedding reception of Zaina and Hameed, son of his friend Syed Younus.
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