FIR registered against 11 persons including panchayat officer

Davanagere: The Jagaluru police in Davanagere district have registered an FIR against 11 persons including a panchayat development officer (PDO) of the gram panchayat on charges of murdering a RTI worker.

According to police, Rama Krishna (33), a social worker and RTI activist and taluk unit president of pro Kannada organisation Karnataka Rakshana Vedike, was hacked to death by the accused by inviting him for dinner at a dhaba in Hosakere. Initially police thought it was a murder for a petty reason in an argument between friends. But Rama Krishnas family members staged protest and denied to take body alleging it is murder for grudge and filed a complaint. They staged a dharna to arrest all the accused involved in the murder.

Based on the complaint, police registered an FIR against Guttidurga PDO A T Nagaraj, his brother Prabhu, Arjun alias Prashant, Kumar, Dhanyakumar, Basavanagowda GC, Yogesh, Nagaraj Acharya, Lalithamma, Renukamma and Pramilamma. Police arrested Prashanth and Yogesh. '' My brother was always fighting against corruption, he exposed lakhs of rupees irregularities in MNREGS of Guttidurga gram panchayat . After the corruption charges were proved the Zilla panchayat authorities suspended PDO A T Nagaraj'' Renuka, sister of deceased, told reporters.

Few months back Nagaraj's brother Prabhu threatened Ramakrishna with dire consequences saying they would finish him if he continues to file RTI applications, she added. She alleged that Jagalur BJP MLA Rama Chandrappa is also involved in the murder. "We have arrested two accused and the police teams are searching for the other accused and would arrest thems soon,'' Davanagere Additional SP Kannika Sikhriwal said.