Mangaluru cops bust ₹11.45 lakh online scam; 2 held for high-value electronics fraud

Mangaluru, Nov 28: In a major breakthrough, police have arrested Rahul, alias Bol Karmaveer Eshwar Jat, a Haryana native, for a brutal train murder committed on October 25. Rahul, a notorious interstate serial offender, was apprehended after a relentless investigation involving multiple state police forces.

The October 25 incident occurred during a train journey when Rahul got into an argument over a cigarette with Mauzzam, a resident of Chikkaballapur. The altercation escalated, leading to Rahul strangling Mauzzam to death. He fled the scene with the victim’s mobile phone, bag, and cash.

Muazzan worked as a sales representative and was differently-abled. He boarded the train on October 24 from Yesvantpur and occupied the Divyang Coach. The incident came to light on the morning of October 25 at Udupi, where a railway guard found Muazzam unresponsive. The railway police immediately rushed him to the hospital, but doctors declared him dead.

Accused Rahul was tracked down through an exhaustive review of over 2,000 CCTV recordings by police teams from Valsad, Vapi, Surat, and Udvada. His identity was eventually confirmed by a vigilant officer from Surat Central Jail, leading to his capture in a joint operation by Railway and Surat police.

Rahul’s criminal record reveals a trail of horrifying offenses across Gujarat, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Telangana, Haryana, and West Bengal. Among these are the rape of a mentally ill minor girl in Pune and the rape and murder of a 19-year-old woman near Udvada railway station in Gujarat's Vapi district. Despite being arrested in the past, Rahul resumed his crimes after securing bail.

On November 19, he allegedly stabbed a 60-year-old man to death aboard the Katihar Express in West Bengal, with a case registered at the Howrah police station. In Telangana, he confessed to murdering a woman in yet another shocking crime.

Public Advisory:

• Stay vigilant when traveling on trains, especially during late hours.
• Report suspicious individuals or activities to railway authorities immediately.
• Ensure your personal belongings are secure while traveling.
• This arrest brings a sense of relief, but the investigations continue as authorities piece together the full extent of Rahul’s crimes.

Angry BJP lawmakers stormed Assembly Speaker U T Khader’s chambers at the Suvarna Vidhana Soudha, escalating tensions after the ruling Congress turned the tables on the saffron party over the Panchamasali Lingayat community’s reservation issue.

The friction began when Congress MLA Vijayanand Kashappanavar, a Panchamasali Lingayat, was allowed to criticise the Basavaraj Bommai-led BJP government’s controversial decision to scrap the 4 per cent Muslim quota, reallocating it equally to Lingayats and Vokkaligas. Kashappanavar slammed the BJP’s move, accusing it of being a mere election gimmick.

“The previous BJP government created two new reservation categories, 2C for Vokkaligas and 2D for Lingayats, just before the 2023 Assembly elections,” Kashappanavar said. “When challenged in the Supreme Court, the BJP government admitted it would not implement the decision. They announced it for votes but backtracked in court, misleading Panchamasali seer Basava Jaya Mrityunjaya Swami.”

Adding fuel to the fire, Kashappanavar alleged that RSS members had incited violence during a protest for enhanced Panchamasali Lingayat reservation. This claim enraged BJP lawmakers, who demanded the comment be expunged. However, Speaker Khader permitted Revenue Minister Krishna Byre Gowda to read aloud the BJP government’s affidavit to the Supreme Court.

“If the Panchamasali Lingayat community has faced injustice, it is because of the BJP,” Gowda declared, sparking further protests from the opposition. BJP leaders accused Khader of being “one-sided” and disregarding a point of order raised by BJP MLA V Sunil Kumar.

When Khader adjourned the session for lunch, the confrontation boiled over. Opposition Leader R Ashoka, BJP state president B Y Vijayendra, MLAs Dr C N Ashwath Narayan, Sunil Kumar, and others barged into Khader’s chambers. Chaos ensued as shouting and hollering echoed through the halls, prompting marshalls to intervene.

“The Speaker was warned that if he continued behaving this way, we would boycott the session,” Narayan stated afterward.

Udupi, Dec 7: A tragic incident involving the death of a 38-year-old hotel worker in Manipal has been confirmed as a case of suicide, dispelling initial reports of murder. Udupi Superintendent of Police (SP) Dr. Arun Kumar clarified the matter after an investigation, including CCTV footage review, revealed the victim, Sridhara, took his own life in a shocking and rare manner.

Incident Overview
The lifeless body of Sridhara, a resident of Kasarakoda and hotel employee in Manipal, was discovered early Friday near Ananta Kalyana Nagara. Initially, it was believed he had been murdered, his throat reportedly slit with a beer bottle. However, a detailed inspection of the scene and CCTV evidence from a nearby shop confirmed that Sridhara inflicted the fatal injury on himself.

Footage revealed the chilling sequence: Sridhara was seen walking purposefully to the spot before suddenly using a beer bottle to slit his throat, collapsing moments later. The act left his throat almost entirely severed, and the beer bottle, along with an empty bag, was found near his body.

Suspected Drug Influence
Authorities suspect Sridhara may have been under the influence of narcotics at the time. A post-mortem examination was conducted at KMC Manipal to uncover any potential contributing factors.

Public Concern and Investigation Status
Although the investigation has ruled out foul play, local residents have urged authorities to probe further to ensure no external involvement was overlooked. The police, while confident in their findings, have withheld the CCTV footage from public release due to the sensitive nature of the case and ongoing inquiries.

“This was a tragic and rare method of suicide, confirmed through thorough investigation and verified CCTV evidence,” SP Dr. Arun Kumar stated, urging the public to avoid speculation.

The incident has left the community in shock, sparking discussions around mental health awareness and the impact of substance abuse. Authorities continue to investigate further to close the case conclusively.