MANGALURU: Dakshina Kannada Superintendent of Police C H Sudheer Kumar Reddy has been transferred as SP of Belagavi on Saturday. Belagavi SP Ravikanthegowda is the new SP of Dakshina Kannada district.
Reddy, a 2010 batch IPS officer had taken charge of the district just six months ago after his predecessor Bhushan Gulabrao Borase was shunted out in June last year after a video in which district minister B Ramanath Rai ordering him to book a case against RSS leader Prabhakar Kalladka, went viral.
Reddy had dealt strictly with trouble-makers and had arrested a journalist who allegedly tried to disturb peace by accusing the police of insulting a holy scripture during a raid on the house of an accused in the Sharath Madiwala murder case. Sources said some organisations had complained to district minister Ramanatha Rai against him saying he was targeting people belonging to a particular religion. Shockingly, the minister, in front of the SP, had told the complainants that he too was of the same opinion.
The SP had also cracked the whip on illegal sand mining. It is said the minister was pressuring the Chief Minister to transfer Reddy for the last three-four months. But the CM is said to have convinced Rai that it would send a wrong message as Reddy had taken charge just a few months earlier. However, with elections fast approaching, the CM has given in to the pressure, sources said. Minister Rai was unavailable for comment.