Union Minister of State Anantkumar Hegde alleged that he received a threat call on Sunday and the caller spoke about beheading him.
According to the minister’s office, a complaint has been filed at the Sirsi Police Station. Staff at his office told TNM that the unknown caller told the minister, "I will behead you. You think you’re a big leader? We’ll behead you and cut you into pieces.”
The caller had called the minister’s office first. Later the same person called the landline number at around 2am on Sunday.
Police have registered a case under section 504 (Intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of the peace) and 507 ( criminal intimidation by an anonymous communication) of the Indian Penal Code based on a complaint made by his Personal Assistant.
According to the complaint copy which was accessed by TNM, the call was made through VOIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) on his mobile at 2:17am and then later a call came at 2:20am on the landline. It is then, that the minister’s wife Srirupa picked up but the caller hung up without speaking.
Once again a call came from the same number at 2:25am and the minister picked up.
This incident comes closely after the controversial MoS Skill Development and Entrepreneurship and MP from Uttar Kannada had alleged that he survived an assassination attempt on the night of April 17. However, that allegation was rubbished by the police and state administration.
The minister had claimed that an accident involving one of his escort vehicles and a lorry had been an attempt on his life.
In subsequent tweets he claimed that it had been a failed assassination attempt that also caused serious injury to a police officer.
However, the police denied this theory, and said that prima facie, there was no evidence to suggest it was anything but an accident. The Minister had faced ridicule after it was established that the lorry was owned by the brother of a BJP functionary.
CM Siddaramaiah slammed the incident as a political gimmick and said it was an attempt by Hegde to outdo the party’s chief ministerial face Yeddyurappa.
“We know Anantkumar Hegde very well, he makes all kinds of allegations,” Home Minister Ramalinga Reddy told TNM.