After the brutal murder of RSS Mandal Prabhandak Rudresh in Bengaluru another Hindutva activist 27-year-old Karthik Raj, who was reportedly assaulted on Saturday near Konaje police station, in coastal city Mangaluru in Karnataka died at a private hospital on Sunday.
According to police sources unidentified people assaulted Raj, son of former Mangaluru Taluk Panchayat vice-president Umesh Ganiga, near Konaje police station. He was hit on his head by a heavy stick while he was jogging from his house in Pajir to a gymnasium in Derlakatte on Saturday.
He was in the intensive care unit of a private hospital and died on Sunday. Following Raj’s death, the Konaje police have registered a case of murder.
The police are still working on clues and are searching for the accused.
Vishwa Hindu Parishad joint secretary Surendara Kumar Jain claimed Raj was a victim of revenge killing by from some people. Mangaluru has become hotbed of communal politics and this incident triggered tension in the area.
The State BJP condemned the death of Karthik Raj and demanded a probe into his death. In a statement BJP State President BS Yeddyurappa condemned the heinous crime and demanded a probe. He said “Murder of Karthik Raj, a young activist belonging to Hindutva school of thought, at Konaje in Mangalore is the latest in the series of politics of violence undertaken by Jihadi forces. I strongly condemn this heinous crime”. “I have been repeatedly saying that there is a pattern and design in the killing of the RSS and BJP activists.
The brutal murder of Karthik Raj due to stab injuries on Sunday–he died on Monday–is a clear pointer to what I have said. Karthik Raj too has been hit by sword from the back; the killers came in a two-wheeler; the rider had covered his face with helmet, the pillion rider had covered himself with muffler. The killing of Rudresh at Kamaraj Road, Bangalore, too had a similar signature. In all the previous incidents also, the modus operandi of the attackers was the same” he added.