Rowdy-sheeter murder case: K’taka Police issue lookout notice against BJP MLA

Posted on by Vividh Bharathi

Bengaluru, Dec 24 (IANS) Karnataka Police on Wednesday continued their hunt for former minister and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLA Byrathi Basavaraj in connection with a rowdy-sheeter murder case.

The Criminal Investigation Department (CID) has issued a lookout notice against him.

Reacting to the development, Home Minister G. Parameshwara said that legal action would be initiated in the case.

Speaking to reporters in Bengaluru, Parameshwara, while responding to a question on the issuance of a lookout notice against the BJP MLA, said, “We cannot dictate to the CID to probe the matter in a particular manner. The CID will initiate action as per legal provisions.”

Police sources said the lookout notice was issued against Byrathi Basavaraj to prevent him from fleeing the country. The MLA is currently absconding, and the CID has been unable to contact him.

Basavaraj has been missing for the past five days, and three special teams have been conducting search operations in Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, and Goa.

Basavaraj has been booked on murder charges and named as the fifth accused in connection with the killing of Shivaprakash alias Biklu Shiva, who was hacked to death outside his residence in July 2025.

The FIR was filed by the victim’s mother, Vijayalaxmi, at the Bharatinagar Police Station in Bengaluru.

MLA Basavaraj, while responding to the alleged charges, had said that he had no connection with the case.

He represents the K.R. Puram Assembly constituency in Bengaluru.

He was once a close aide of Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah before joining the BJP.

The Special Court for MLAs and MPs in Bengaluru, on Tuesday, dismissed the bail petition filed by Basavaraj in connection with the murder of a rowdy-sheeter, following which the BJP MLA’s arrest has become imminent.

Senior counsel Ashok Naik, appearing for the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), submitted in the Special court for MLAs/MPs that despite being aware of the Karnataka High Court’s order, the accused MLA had been absconding since December 18.

“The accused persons, including MLA Basavaraj, conspired and carried out the murder. Primary accused, Jagadish, was in contact with MLA Byrathi Basavaraj. Records have been submitted to show that the prime accused and MLA Basavaraj had travelled together to the Kumbh Mela. MLA Basavaraj had a dispute with the deceased over the temple land. Byrathi Basavaraj is involved in the real estate business, but is not visibly active,” Naik said.

He added that the MLA’s close aides were involved in the land dispute with the victim.

“The primary accused allegedly informed MLA Basavaraj about the murder incident and then fled abroad, which has been established through the tower location data,” he said.

Opposing the CID’s arguments, counsel for MLA Byrathi Basavaraj submitted that five months and 10 days had passed since the incident.

“The investigating agency remained silent for five months and is now seeking custodial interrogation,” he said.

He added that a charge sheet had already been filed against 18 accused persons, of whom seven to eight were strangers directly involved in the murder, yet MLA Basavaraj had been named as the fifth accused.

He also said that after the case was transferred to the CID, no summons was issued to MLA Basavaraj.

–IANS

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Legal notices have been served through Sahadeva Law Chambers to several online platforms and vendors including PushMyCart (Mahita LLC) and Transact Foods Limited, for unauthorized commercial exploitation of the Tirupati Laddu name and falsely associating their offerings with the temple.

According to an official statement, the legal notices highlighted that Tirupati Laddu is a protected GI under the Geographical Indications of Goods (Registration and Protection) Act, 1999.

The preparation of the laddu is done exclusively within the Tirumala temple under the supervision of TTD, following a time-honoured and sanctified process. Unauthorised use and sale of the name not only infringes legal rights but also undermines the spiritual sanctity of the offering.

In response, PushMyCart acknowledged receipt of the legal notice and, showing goodwill, suspended the infringing product listings pending legal review. Several other vendors have also taken down their listings following TTD’s proactive outreach.

“The Tirupati Laddu is not just a product, but a sacred prasadam with deep spiritual and cultural value. We are committed to taking all necessary legal steps to prevent its misuse and to protect the trust of crores of devotees worldwide,” said TTD Executive Officer J. Syamala Rao.

This is claimed to be one of the first instances in India where a temple offering protected under GI law has been defended through formal legal channels on international platforms.

Meanwhile, Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing Tirupati laddu ghee adulteration case has opposed the bail petitions of all three accused in the Andhra Pradesh High court.

The MD of AR Dairy Raju Sekharan, Bhole Baba Organic Dairy directors Pomil Jain, Vipin Jain and Vaishavi CEO Apoorva Vinaykant Chawda, applied for bail. The court adjourned the hearing to June 17.

The CBI counsel told the High Court that the accused were all part of a criminal conspiracy. Bhole Baba Dairy allegedly used AR Dairy and Vaishnavi Dairy as front companies to secure ghee supply contract from TTD.

The SIT investigations revealed that the ghee supplied to TTD was mixed with palm oil and chemicals. The SIT led by CBI Joint Director Viresh Prabhu arrested the accused in February.

The SIT was constituted by the Supreme Court to probe the allegations of adulterated ghee being used in the preparation of sacred laddus.

–IANS

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They don’t know how to compete with BJP: UP Minister Anil Rajbhar slams SP

New Delhi, April 21 (IANS) Uttar Pradesh Cabinet Minister Anil Rajbhar has hit back sharply at Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav’s recent assertion that the INDIA alliance will remain intact for the 2027 UP Assembly elections, saying that they don’t know how to compete with BJP.

Speaking to IANS, Rajbhar questioned the need for such a declaration, suggesting that it reflects internal confusion and political insecurity within the alliance.

“You fought in 2024, but there was no election after that. So who asked you to give this clarification? They don’t understand how to compete with the BJP,” Rajbhar remarked.

“They’ve already started this ‘fielding’ for the sake of their own people, for whom they go to the extremes of exploitation. They start giving such statements to ensure their own supporters remain aligned and not confused.”

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“The opposition’s INDIA alliance will continue till the 2027 UP Assembly elections,” Akhilesh stated, indicating a ‘prolonged’ partnership with the Congress in the state.

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“Who asked them if there will be a gathbandhan or not? After the Lok Sabha elections, look at what happened in Haryana, in Maharashtra… then you see them abusing each other in Delhi. The country understands all these games,” he said.

He also accused the opposition of underestimating the public.

“The misfortune of these people is that they think the people of the country are ignorant. And so they start playing these games,” he added.

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“The Socialist Party and its allies are unable to digest the diversity of Sanatan Dharma and the spiritual power of India, which is now being embraced globally through the Mahakumbh,” he said.

“They don’t talk about real issues like farmers, youth, women, health, education, or law and order. They have no substance left, so they’re just roaming around making statements.” he said.

–IANS

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FairPoint: India’s Operation Sindoor forces Pakistan to own its terror proxies, world cannot stay silent

New Delhi, May 11 (IANS) Operation Sindoor is a success as it has brought Pakistan to its knees and helped India starkly expose the neighbouring country’s grooming of terror gangs and complicity in global terrorism.

The operation was not just a tribute to the victims of terror or an act of vengeance for the deaths in Pahalgam – it is a symbol of the fight against terrorism that Pakistan has been unleashing not only in India but also across other countries.

The operation has revealed bitter truths about Pakistan – something that even the US operation to eliminate Osama Bin Laden could not fully expose, particularly the Pakistan Army’s role in nurturing terrorist groups. These gangs have unleashed terror in India for decades, killing hundreds of innocent civilians and causing the ethnic cleansing of Hindus from Kashmir.

India has repeatedly informed the world about Pakistan’s involvement in various terror attacks across the country. New Delhi has provided substantial evidence, the most significant being Ajmal Kasab, the terrorist captured alive during the Mumbai attacks on November 26, 2008, and proof of the Pulwama terror attack. India has also consistently warned the global community about Pakistan’s designs in Kashmir – a sinister campaign it has pursued since 1947, and the latest incident is the Pahalgam massacre.

Unfortunately, the world has largely turned a blind eye. There have been statements, but no concrete action has been taken against what is essentially a terror factory. While the United Nations and several countries have designated individual Pakistani terrorists, they have stopped short of labelling the country itself. Operation Sindoor has provided irrefutable proof – evidence too strong to ignore.

The operation was launched on May 7 in response to the terror attack in Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir, on April 22, which killed 26 civilians. The attack was quickly claimed by The Resistance Front (TRF), an offshoot of the Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), which emerged after the abrogation of Article 370 in J&K in August 2019.

The close ties between Pakistan and TRF became evident during discussions about the Pahalgam attack at the United Nations Security Council. Pakistan played a key role in removing the group’s name from the UNSC’s condemnation statement. If Pakistan had no connection to the attack, why the agitation over naming the group?

Under Operation Sindoor, Indian Armed Forces targeted terrorist infrastructure at nine specific locations in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. All these sites were known terror bases, and several designated terrorists were neutralised.

Videos and photographs surfaced showing Abdur Rauf, a US-designated terrorist, leading prayers for those killed in the strike on the LeT’s headquarters in Muridke. The funeral was attended by military officers in uniform. The terrorists were given “state honours” – draped in the Pakistani national flag, saluted by army officers, and one coffin even received a floral wreath from the Pakistan Army Chief.

In the initial phase of Operation Sindoor, five terrorists, assigned key roles in Jaish-e-Mohammed and LeT – were eliminated. They were identified as Mudassar Khadian Khas, Hafiz Muhammed Jameel, Mohammad Yusuf Azhar, Khalid alias Abu Akasha, and Mohammad Hassan Khan. Senior Pakistani military officers attended their funerals. The photos and videos have gone viral, further exposing the decades-old nexus between Pakistan’s military and terrorist organisations.

In perhaps the most damning admission, Pakistan’s Defence Minister, Khawaja Asif, provided undeniable proof by admitting in a television interview that Pakistan had funded and supported terrorist groups for decades, especially during the US-led wars in Afghanistan. Asif described this involvement as “dirty work” done for the United States and the West, including the UK.

Going even further, Asif told Parliament that these terrorists constitute Pakistan’s “second line of defence,” and that “students of madrasas would be deployed when needed.”

It is also telling that the Director General of Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), Lieutenant General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry – the man briefing the world on India-Pakistan tensions – is the son of a declared terrorist, Sultan Bashiruddin Mahmood, a known aide of Osama bin Laden.

Operation Sindoor has laid bare how Pakistan’s political and military establishments are dangerously intertwined with jihadist and terrorist elements. It is time for the world to sit up and take notice.

The evidence is overwhelming – Pakistan is a rogue terror state that weaponises religion to further its agenda. India’s operation has dismantled Pakistan’s terror network in ways the Americans could not. It proves that India has the capacity to make Pakistan bend.

Operation Sindoor is not just a tribute to the women who lost their husbands in Pahalgam – it is a bold demonstration of the real Shakti of India’s defence forces and political resolve. It reveals evidence that Pakistan’s state policy favours terrorism. Can the world ignore the Operation Sindoor proofs?

(Deepika Bhan can be contacted at deepika.b@ians.in)

–IANS

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