Karnataka Muslim cattle trader killed by 'cow vigilantes'; police suspect political ties

The FIR states that even though Pasha produced documents proving that he had bought the cattle from the local market, he was abused. The accused Puneeth, who initially got into a verbal argument with Pasha during interception, also allegedly asked him to 'go to Pakistan'.

Ramanagara (Karnataka): A cattle trader was found dead under mysterious circumstances at Sathaunur in Ramanagara district on Friday. The family of the victim, identified as Idrees Pasha(45), has alleged that a 'cow vigilante' named Puneeth Kerehalli and his accomplices have murdered him. The Sathanaur police registered a case and started the investigation soon after Pasha's body was recovered a few meters away from the Police Station on Saturday morning.

As alleged by Pasha's family, Puneeth, a self-proclaimed cow vigilante in the area, chased and intercepted Pasha's vehicle along with his accomplices on Friday night. He had demanded a ransom of Rs 2 lakh to release Pasha, to which he had refused. The FIR states that even though Pasha produced documents proving that he had bought the cattle from the local market, he was abused and killed.

It further states that the accused Puneeth, who initially got into a verbal argument with Pasha during interception, asked him to 'go to Pakistan'. Later, Puneet chased and assaulted Pasha, leading to severe injuries that ultimately resulted in his death. While one of Pasha's associates, identified as Syed, was handed over to the police by Puneeth's group in the morning, Pasha's dead body was found a few hundred meters away from the station in the morning.

The incident led to tension in Sathanur, where Pasha's family members protested with his dead body, demanding justice against the cow vigilantes led by Puneet Kerehalli. The police have registered a case of murder under IPC Sections 302, 341 (wrongful restraint), and 504 (intentional insult to provoke breach of peace) based on the complaint filed, while Puneeth is currently absconding.

Alt News founder and fact-checker Mohammed Zubair also took to Twitter to unveil some information on the case. As claimed by Zubair, Puneeth Kerehalli had done a FB live at 2:30 AM on April 1st, after intercepting Pasha's vehicle near the police station. "He introduces 3 other members of his gang (Pawan, Gopi & XYX). As he goes fb live, his associates chased Idrees & friends. He can be heard saying I had item (Gun?)," Zubair wrote in one of his tweets with a video from the Facebook Live he mentioned.

• Puneeth Kerehalli is very well connected with Several State BJP leaders.
  Pic with BJP MP Tejasvi Surya and BJP MLA CT Ravi. pic.twitter.com/DMJoHkMnun

  — Mohammed Zubair (@zoo_bear) April 2, 2023 " class="align-text-top noRightClick twitterSection" data="

  Puneeth Kerehalli is very well connected with Several State BJP leaders.
  Pic with BJP MP Tejasvi Surya and BJP MLA CT Ravi. pic.twitter.com/DMJoHkMnun

  — Mohammed Zubair (@zoo_bear) April 2, 2023

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  Puneeth Kerehalli is very well connected with Several State BJP leaders.
  Pic with BJP MP Tejasvi Surya and BJP MLA CT Ravi. pic.twitter.com/DMJoHkMnun

  — Mohammed Zubair (@zoo_bear) April 2, 2023

He further went on to post Puneeth's photographs with several political leaders and Ministers from the BJP, claiming he has some strong connections with the ruling political party. Zubair's Twitter thread includes Puneeth's photographs with BJP MP Tejasvi Surya, BJP MLA CT Ravi, Minister of Higher Education CN Ashwath Narayan, BJP MLA BC Nagesh, BJP MP Pratap Simha, Tamil Nadu BJP State President Annamalai, Founder of 'Yuva Brigade' Chakravarty Sulibele, and Chief of Sri Ram Sene, Pramod Muthalik.