Bengaluru Violence: Govt Orders Magisterial Probe, Will Do 'Asset Recovery'

The Karnataka government on Wednesday decided to conduct a magisterial inquiry into the violence in parts of Bengaluru , in which at least three people were killed .

It was decided that according to the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) guidelines, an executive magistrate will conduct the inquiry, IANS  reported. 

The government has also decided to recover the losses arising from damage to public property during the violence from the protesters, Home Minister Basavaraj Bommai said

“We have come to a decision as per the Supreme Court order that when such riots take place and properties are damaged, the loss has to be recovered from those who have caused the damage. I have given orders to initiate all the measures to recover losses from those who have caused the damage,” Bommai said, according to PTI.

Bengaluru City Police has identified at least 145 people linked to the violence that took place at Congress MLA Akhanda Srinivasa Murthy’s residence and later in and around the premises of DJ Halli and KG Halli police stations. 

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Joint Commissioner of Police (Crime) Bengaluru Sandeep Patil told The Indian Express , “As many as 145 people have been arrested as on Wednesday afternoon in connection with violence in Bengaluru over an alleged inciting social media post.”

The Karnataka government has termed the violence a “well-planned act” with Revenue Minister Ashoka saying that the manner in which the violence were perpetrated shows that “it was a well planned act and was intended to spread to other parts of the city. These are traitors.”

Another Karnataka minister CT Ravi called the violence “planned” and said the government “will do asset recovery from protesters like in Uttar Pradesh”, according to NDTV .

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath had claimed in December last year that the government will “take revenge ” on those involved in the violence during the anti-CAA protests by confiscating their properties.  

As the Covid-19 lockdown restrictions started easing, the Lucknow administration began on 1 July attaching properties of those accused of vandalising public property during the anti-CAA protests in December. Recovery notices worth about Rs 1.5 crore were sent to over 50 people, PTI  reported last month. 

Congress says ‘complete failure’ of law and order 

The Congress on Wednesday condemned the violence inn Bengaluru and said it was a “complete failure” of law and order machinery. 

Congress spokesperson Randeep Surjewala tweeted:

Karnataka Congress President DK Shivakumar tweeted that Congress has set up a fact finding committee. 

 (With PTI inputs)