Hindu Mahasabha state president Rajesh Pavithran
Hindu Mahasabha state president Rajesh Pavithran

Karnataka Hindu Mahasabha leader held in extortion case

The accused also threatened to cut off his limbs, the complaint said.

Karnataka’s Surathkal police on Thursday, December 15, arrested Hindu Mahasabha state president Rajesh Pavithran on the charges of threatening to leak the private information of a businessman on social media if his demand for gold and cash was not met. Suresh, a resident of Dakshina Kannada district’s Kavoor, in his complaint to the police said he and Pavithran had decided to do business at Surathkal on a partnership basis. Later, after coming to know more about Pavithran's dubious business deals, he opted out.

Enraged by this, Pavithran secretly took away Suresh's laptop and threatened to make public his private information on the computer if he did not yield to the demand for gold and cash. The accused also threatened to cut off his limbs, the complaint said. Based on the complaint, a case was registered and the accused was arrested, police sources said.

Last year, Mangaluru police arrested Hindu Mahasabha state secretary Dharmendra for issuing threats to Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai and the BJP government in Karnataka over the demolition of a temple in Mysuru. The police had booked him along with five others after a video of them addressing the media was widely shared.

A case against Dharmendra was registered under sections 120 (B) for criminal conspiracy, 153 (A) (promoting enmity between religious groups), 505 (2) (statements conducing to public mischief), and 506 (criminal intimidation) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). Sabha leaders Rajesh Pavithran, Prem, Sandeep, and other functionaries will also be questioned, the police said.

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