NIA Conducts Extensive Raids in Karnataka and Tamil Nadu Linked to BJP Worker Murder Case
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Bengaluru, Dec 5 (NationPress) The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Thursday executed searches at various sites across Karnataka, including the state capital Bengaluru, as well as Tamil Nadu, in connection with the 2022 murder case of BJP worker Praveen Nettaru.
"The searches targeted premises associated with the absconding suspects, their associates, and the accused involved in the murder of BJP worker Praveen Kumar Nettaru, which the NIA has been investigating since August 4, 2022, after assuming control of the case from the Karnataka police," stated the NIA.
A variety of digital devices and incriminating documents were confiscated during the Thursday operations, part of the NIA's ongoing efforts to apprehend those evading justice in this case. To date, a total of 19 individuals have been arrested in connection with the murder.
The NIA has filed charges against 23 people, including four who remain at large. Furthermore, non-bailable warrants and rewards have been issued for the absconding suspects, as reported by the NIA.
Praveen Nettaru, who served as the BJP Yuva Morcha's District Secretary for Dakshina Kannada, was brutally murdered with sharp weapons on July 26, 2022, in an attack attributed to members of the banned Popular Front of India (PFI).
Officials indicated that the vicious murder was intended to instill fear within a specific community.
According to sources, NIA officials conducted simultaneous raids at 16 locations across Karnataka and Tamil Nadu on Thursday. These raids were executed in various areas of Bengaluru and the Kodagu district of Karnataka, as well as in Chennai.
Sources revealed that the NIA aimed to gather intelligence regarding the absconding suspects in the murder case.
The agency suspects that some fleeing accused may have relocated abroad, from where they continue their operations.
It has been established that the accused were in regular contact with local individuals in various southern Indian cities, according to sources.
Investigations previously indicated that the assailants targeted Praveen Nettaru as an act of revenge for the death of a youth from a minority community during a road rage incident.
The NIA has submitted a comprehensive charge sheet comprising 1,500 pages, including testimonies from 240 witnesses.
The murder triggered a series of revenge killings and stabbing incidents within the state.
The state BJP unit and former state BJP chief Nalin Kumar Kateel provided a house to the family of Nettaru.
The previous BJP government, led by former Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai, also secured a job for Nettaru's wife.
However, the Congress government, under CM Siddaramaiah, initially failed to renew her contract, leading to public outrage. Following the backlash, the Siddaramaiah administration reinstated Nettaru's wife.
