Karnataka considering CID probe in Ballari violence; 26 arrested in case

The Karnataka government is considering transferring the investigation into the violent clashes in Ballari to the Criminal Investigation Department. Meanwhile, police said on Sunday that 26 people have been arrested in connection with the case while two private gunmen accused of firing the bullet that killed a 28-year-old Congress worker have been detained.

The violence had broken out between supporters of BJP MLA G Janardhana Reddy and those aligned with Congress MLA Nara Bharath Reddy on January 1 after a dispute over the installation of a political banner near the residence of Janardhana Reddy in Ballari city escalated into stone pelting and firing.

Police said they had arrested 26 people in connection with multiple incidents of violence, linked to disputes over banners. “Based on evidence collected during the investigation, including witness statements and video footage, police traced and arrested 26 accused and produced them in a court,” police said in a statement.

Home minister G Parameshwara said on Sunday that the option of handing over the case to the CID was under active consideration, a day after police detained Baljit Singh and Gurucharan Singh, identified by officers as a private gunman whose revolver was allegedly used in the firing.

Police officers familiar with the investigation said Gurucharan Singh had been among four private gunmen summoned for questioning over the past two days. During the inquiry, investigators determined that the bullet that killed the Congress worker, Rajashekhar, was fired from a revolver carried by Gurucharan Singh, according to the officers. Further details, they said, would emerge as the investigation progressed.

Police have reached a prima facie conclusion that the bullet that killed Rajashekhar was fired from the weapon of one of the gunmen attached to Bharath Reddy. During the post mortem examination conducted at the Ballari Medical College and Research Centre, doctors recovered the bullet casing lodged in the victim’s body. Investigators have since seized five firearms belonging to gunmen who were present during the altercation.

Chief minister Siddaramaiah, speaking to reporters, said that investigation would closely examine both the ownership of the firearm used and the circumstances that led to the firing. “It is possible that Satish Reddy, a close aide of Congress MLA Nara Bharath Reddy, fired in the air, and the bullet accidentally struck Rajashekar,” he said.

According to officers involved in the probe, there is an initial match between the bullet casing recovered from the body and one of the firearms seized from Bharath Reddy’s security detail. They cautioned, however, that only a forensic ballistic examination could conclusively establish the link. “The said gunman is missing and a hunt is on for him,” a senior police officer said, adding that investigators were confident he would be traced soon. Police are also analysing multiple video clips that purportedly show gunmen linked to Bharath Reddy firing their pistols into the air during the clash.

Parameshwara said the weapons used by private gunmen had already been seized and that the outcome was now hinged on forensic analysis. “I had said this before, the guns of the gunmen hired for private security have been seized. Now the ballistic expert’s report will reveal from which gun it was fired. I have told the Forensic Science Laboratory officials to give an investigation report. The process is on. The ADGP had told me that the firing didn’t happen with a police gun,” he told reporters.

Asked whether the case would be transferred to the CID or handled by a special investigation team, the home minister said the matter was under discussion. “We are also mulling it. There are possibilities of giving the matter to the CID. I will speak to CM Siddaramaiah. If need be then we will do it,” he said.

Parameshwara also pointed to what he described as the sequence of events leading up to the violence. “There was no commotion till Janardhana Reddy came to Ballari,” he claimed. “We will investigate that as well.”

Amid the continuing probe, Bharath Reddy and the district in charge minister BZ Zameer Ahmed Khan met chief minister Siddaramaiah at Toranagal’s Jindal Airport, where he was in transit from Sindhanur to Bengaluru. Officials said the chief minister sought a detailed briefing on the incident from senior police officers.