Bengaluru riots: Samiuddin missing? Wife to file habeas corpus plea
BENGALURU: Fathima Tabassum, the wife of DJ Halli riot accused Samiuddin who is suspected to have had links with the alleged terror module Al Hind, on Thursday said she has filed a missing complaint about her husband with the City Police Commissioner’s office and is planning to approach the High Court to file a habeas corpus petition seeking his physical presence.
Samiuddin was detained by the Central Crime Branch (CCB) on August 15 night and is being probed for his suspected links with members of Al Hind, which was busted last year by Bengaluru and Tamil Nadu police. Fathima said Samiuddin went missing soon after he received a call, purportedly from CCB sleuths, on August 15 night for his suspected involvement in the riots, where mobs set fire to Pulakeshinagar MLA Akhanda Srinivasa Murthy’s ancestral house in Kaval Byrasandra under DJ Halli police limits on August 11.
Fathima, a resident of HBR Layout who runs an NGO named NAARI, said she desperately tried contacting him ever since and also tried to meet him, but she did not get any information. The couple got married two years ago.
A senior CCB officer said Samiuddin was arrested for riots and that investigations revealed his links with members of Al Hind, who are accused in bomb blast cases in the city. The officer said Samiuddin is in police custody for further interrogation and has been held at an undisclosed location. Fathima said Samiuddin is just a volunteer and not an office-bearer of NAARI, and that the NGO received no foreign funding as it is not registered under the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act.
Civil society on fact-finding mission
Bengaluru: Various civil society organisations of the city have come together to conduct fact-finding into the violence at DJ Halli. Civil society members urged people to come forward with information. The 24- member fact-finding team will develop a timeline of events that led to the violent outbreak on August 11 at DJ Halli and surrounding areas, and is expected the publish a report in 10 days.