BENGALURU: Bengaluru police have begun piecing together the evidence to ascertain what led to the mob violence on the night of August 11 in which three men were killed and several injured over a derogatory post on Facebook.
Initial investigation seems to suggest that it was premeditated violence, according to sources. “New information is being revealed. Initial investigation points to the SDPI’s role but more information is being collected. We have arrested some SDPI members too,” Home Minister Basavaraj S Bommai said.
An FIR was filed against Naveen almost 10 hours after the incident. According to highly-placed sources, Naveen, the nephew of MLA Akhanda Srinivasa Murthy, whose Facebook post purportedly led to the attack, is not new to the police. He and his brother are known for selling litigation sites, have piled up huge debts. “There are several cheque bounce cases against Naveen, who was arrested once by Banaswadi police,” said a police source.
Other than his political leanings, police are also tracing his call records. According to another officer, in his statement to police, Naveen reportedly said he lost his mobile phone around 4pm, and had lodged a complaint. He says the post was put up after that. “However, police also found a reply to another post from Naveen. This statement of his is being verified,” said an officer.
Police also suspect the role of another person in helping Naveen put up the post. “Naveen’s English is not so sophisticated and the language used is horrendous and extremely derogatory. Though the post was in reaction to another post, this looks like it was written by another person to create trouble, or he was told to write in a particular manner. We are investigating,” an officer explained.
Phone tower locations to give leads
Police continued to detain youngsters, many of them in a drugged state and from other areas, allegedly involved in the violence. “Through phone tower locations, we have found that many of the boys were mobilised from RT Nagar, Goripalya and Fraser Town areas. The tower locations will reveal all details. If they are from other areas, it clearly shows that the incident was planned and the organisers had enough time to mobilise people. Most of the boys were on drugs, and it is taking us time to get details from those arrested,” a senior officer said.
Police are also trying to trace CCTV footage of some of the boys who held petrol filled packets and hurled them at police and vehicles. Sleuths are visiting petrol bunks across the city to gather evidence about whether they could have bought petrol in bulk, and the date and quantity of purchase.
SDPI’s strong presence in area?
Senior police officers claim that SDPI has a strong presence in the area and is capable of “organising people”for the act. A senior officer said on condition of anonymity, “There are many types of gangs in these dense areas. There is a gang of young boys aged 16-21, who are notorious for being in a drugged state and ready to join in such incidents.” “The other is a group of SDPI leaders who work in four teams, and could be involved if violence happens simultaneously in various areas. Such things won’t go unnoticed, and will come out soon,” the police officer added.
Delay in reaching spot?
When vehicles were going up in flames, and the police appeared helpless, it is said that several senior police officers were at a farewell party organised to send off a recently transferred officer from that area.