Many shops in Shivajinagar were shuttered while hundreds of members of the Bharatiya Janata Party, Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh and affiliated organisations took out a procession on Monday to protest the murder of a local RSS leader. The city police have formed six teams to investigate the murder and multiple persons are being questioned, but the family of the victim has refused consent for a post-mortem till the culprits are caught.
Rudresh R. (35) was killed on Sunday when he had stopped on Kamaraj Road to talk some acquaintances while on his way home from an RSS route march.
The busy shopping streets of Kamaraj Road, Commercial Street and even Russell Market remained shut. Roads were empty as shopkeepers and customers chose to stay away from the area. To prevent any untoward incident, the police had clamped day-long prohibitory orders (Section 144) in four police station limits in central Bengaluru (see box) .
There were tense moments as the procession made its way from Kamaraj Road and the police commissioner’s office on Bhagwan Mahaveer Road (Infantry Road). Apart from platoons of the local police, nine platoons of Central forces were posted along the route of the procession that lasted nearly three hours.Around 11 a.m., when the procession neared Russell Market, a few men threw coconut shells and stones at the police who used force to disperse the crowd.
The procession led to traffic diversions around Shivajinagar. Vehicular movement on airport road and Infantry Road came to a standstill. Services from Shivajinagar Bus Stand were disrupted in the morning. Buses were stopped at Balekundry Circle and Infantry Road. Commuters were seen waiting to board buses at the busy junctions.
Numerous BJP leaders, including the former Deputy Chief Minister R. Ashoka, MPs Shobha Karandlaje and P.C. Mohan, took part in the procession. During their meeting with the Police Commissioner N.S. Meghrikh, they set Monday midnight as the deadline to arrest the culprits.
Six teams formed
The police have formed six teams to investigate the murder. A senior officer said that the modus operandi of the murder pointed to the use of contract killers. Rudresh was travelling on his bike when the two assailants pounced on him and slashed his throat with a machete. Police are examining CCTV footage to identify the killers. They are also examining his personal and financial transactions in connection with his fledgling real estate and money-lending businesses; political rivalries as he had a growing role in the politics of the area; communal-linked reasons as Rudresh had been known to be involved in impromptu raids on suspected cattle transporters and slaughter.
“We are also looking at revenge as a motive, as Rudresh had been in the centre of numerous fights in the past. A case had been booked against him in Shivajinagar Police Station in connection with a fight a few months ago,” said a police officer.
Police have questioned several people — not all being suspects — for information and leads on these angles. Mr. Meghrikh expressed confidence that the case will be solved soon.
A senior police officer said that the modus operandi of the murder pointed to the use of contract killers
