Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has condemned the murder of BJP worker Deepak Rao and asked citizens in Dakshina Kannada to not be swayed by forces spreading ‘mischievous propaganda’.
“My sincere appeal to the citizens of Dakshina Kannada is to not be swayed by mischievous propaganda forces that seek to divide our society on communal lines,” Siddaramaiah said in a tweet.
He also announced Rs. 10 lakh in compensation to Rao’s family. “I condemn the dastardly act of murdering young Deepak Rao, and offer my deepest condolences to the family for their loss. While we know the loss is irreparable, we have announced Rs 10 lakh as compensation to the family,” said the Karnataka chief minister.
He assured that he has spoken to Mangaluru Commissioner TR Suresh to ensure a fair investigation into Deepak’s death.
Siddaramaiah’s statements came at a time opposition leaders accused the CM of nurturing ‘politics of murder’ in Karnataka and demanded his resignation in connection with Rao’s murder. BJP leaders also called for a National Investigative Agency (NIA) probe into the incident, as per The Hindu.
Deepak Rao was hacked to death in broad daylight on Wednesday in Katipalla. Deepak, a sales executive with a mobile phones distributor in Mangaluru, was on his way to work when the accused waylaid him and assaulted him.
Rao’s death led to fresh violence in the district after two more people were injured in stabbing incidents. Basheer (47) and Mubashir (22) were left seriously hurt after they were attacked by different groups with lethal weapons in Mangaluru and Surathkal.
The victim’s family was upset with Mangaluru Police’s actions of moving the body discreetly from the hospital to his residence and initially refused to cremate the body on Thursday. Later in the day, the victim’s family reluctantly agreed to cremate the body even as pro-Hindu groups staged protests over the gruesome incident.