Ex-minister gets security after abduction, assault, case transferred to Kolar police

Bengaluru: The Bengaluru city police on Wednesday transferred the case relating to the abduction of former minister Varthur Prakash to the Kolar police where the alleged incident took place. The police also provided him with a gunman in view of threat to his life, police sources said.

The former independent MLA from Kolar met Karnataka Home Minister Basavaraj Bommai on Wednesday and apprised him about the situation, sources said. Prakash had lodged a complaint at the Bellandur police station in Bengaluru on Tuesday stating that eight people intercepted his car on November 25, bundled him and his driver Sunil into another car.

They blind-folded and drove them to an unknown place on November 25 in the night from near his farmhouse in Kolar district, he said in his complaint. The police too confirmed that the former minister and his driver were beaten up as there were blood clots and marks all over their body. In his complaint, Prakash said the unknown people tied their hands and legs, beat them up with rods and tortured them mercilessly. The abductors had demanded a ransom of Rs 30 crore but he could only provide them Rs 48 lakh through a man by name Nayaz at Kolar.

Due to the torture, Sunil fainted and the abductors thought he had been dead. According to Prakash, the criminals thought that they should drop them back and when they were having liquor in a bar, Sunil managed to escape. Prakash claimed that the abductors threw him out from their car at Shivanapura near Hoskote town on the outskirts of Bengaluru on November 28 morning. Taking the help of a passer-by, he got to a hospital, received first aid and then reached home.He said he took rest for two days and then lodged a complaint. PTI