The 15 people were arrested following suspicion that the man, whose identity has not been established, was assaulted during a cricket match around 3 pm on Sunday.
Published Apr 29, 2025 | 3:35 PM ⚊ Updated Apr 29, 2025 | 3:35 PM
The unidentified man was attacked during a cricket match. (Representational image)
Synopsis: A post-mortem examination suggested that internal bleeding and shock resulting from multiple strong blows to the back and other parts of the body, and a lack of timely medical treatment, killed the man.
Mangaluru police have arrested 15 people in connection with the discovery of an unidentified body near the Bhatra Kallurti Temple in Kudupu on Sunday, 27 April.
The 15 people were arrested following suspicion that the man, whose identity has not been established, was assaulted during a cricket match near the temple ground around 3 pm on Sunday.
Though the body bore no external injuries, doctors at Wenlock District Hospital, who performed the post-mortem examination, informed the police in their preliminary report that internal bleeding and shock resulting from multiple strong blows to the back and other body parts, and a lack of timely medical treatment, had led to the man’s death.
Even as the police said the motive for the attack was yet to be established, Karnataka Home Minister G Parameshwara said the man was lynched after he had raised a pro-Pakistan slogan.
“An incident of mob lynching has been reported involving an unidentified individual. I was informed that there are reports he was shouting ‘Pakistan zindabad’ during a local cricket match, which led some people to beat him. He didn’t die on the spot but passed away later. I’m yet to receive the full report. Around 10 to 12 people have been arrested, and further investigation is underway,” the minister said.
Parameshwara added that the government was taking the incident seriously. “It should not happen because Karnataka is a peaceful state. We don’t allow these things to happen. Even if he had raised slogans like Pakistan zindabad, they (the accused) should have informed the police.”
The minister said there was no clarity on whether the incident was a communal one. “l appeal to the people to maintain peace and harmony. In Mangaluru and Dakshina Kannada, any incident is connected to communal tension. Such things should not repeat,” he said.
Police arrested 15 people in connection with the incident. (Supplied)
Police identified the arrested men as Sachin T (26), Devdas (50), Manjunath (32), Saideep (29), Nitesh Kumar alias Santosh (33), Dheekshith Kumar (32), Sandeep (23), Vivian Alvares (41), Sridatta (32), Rahul (23), Pradeep Kumar (35), Manish Shetty (21), Dhanush (31), Dheekshith (27) and Kishore Kumar (37). All were living in and around Kudupu.
Investigators expressed suspicion that at least 25 men were involved in the attack. The deceased was reportedly attacked with sticks, despite bystanders’ attempts to stop the assault.
Mangaluru City Police Commissioner Anupam Agarwal said efforts were on to identify the deceased youth.
“The police have circulated the photograph of the deceased widely, but we have not been able to establish his identity. We are interrogating the accused to find the motive for beating up this man, which led to his death. Several teams have been formed to interrogate witnesses and suspects present at the scene, and to collect and analyse CCTV footage from the vicinity as well as mobile tower dump data,” the officer said.
The case was registered based on a complaint by Deepak Kumar (33), a resident of Keshava Compound, Mangaluru. A FIR has been registered against 19 people in Mangaluru Rural Police Station under sections 103(2), 115(2), 189(2), 190, 191(1), 191(3), 240 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.
Police said a hunt was on for the remaining suspects.
(Edited by Majnu Babu).
