The Karnataka police said on Friday that two youths were arrested for allegedly strewing nails on the road leading to Datta Peetha, a sacred place for Hindus, during the recently held Datta Jayanti here with an aim to create trouble for pilgrims. The accused have been identified as Mohammad Shahbaaz and Wahid Hussain, both residents of Dubai Nagar in the district headquarters town of Chikkamagaluru in Karnataka.
The arrested accused are said to be cadres of the banned Islamist outfit Popular Front of India (PFI).
As per Times Now, another accused named Azam also surrendered before a court today in Karnataka’s Chikkamagaluru district, where the alleged incident took place. Azam is also said to be a PFI worker.
The police said the accused had purchased nails in large quantities from local shops and on the day when the Shobha Yatra commenced on December 6, they threw the nails on the road for three kilometres from the Kaimara check-post to Datta Peetha. This, they said was done with the intention to create trouble for the Hindu devotees who visited the shrine during the festival held between December 6 and 8.
The act caused many vehicles’ tyres to go flat. Devotees who travelled long distances on foot to get to the shrine encountered obstacles as well, the police said, adding that fortunately no tragedy was reported considering devotees had arrived in thousands and there was also a continuous movement of vehicles.
The police formed a separate team to nab the miscreants. The police went to surrounding hardware stores and collected information on the purchase of large quantities of nails and zeroed in on the accused, it said.
A probe into the incident revealed that there were many more involved in the crime. The police have now launched a manhunt to arrest the remaining accused.
During preliminary interrogation, the duo revealed that they saw people celebrating the festival in a grand way by putting out posters and banners, Chikkamagaluru District Superintendent of Police Uma Prashanth said.
“Since people were celebrating Datta Jayanti in a grand manner, they (accused) thought this should not happen. They decided to strew nails which will puncture the tyres of vehicles and disrupt vehicular movement. They wanted vehicles to stop and the pilgrims to suffer,” she explained.
Meanwhile, members of the Bajrang Dal and Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP), along with several police officers had cleared the road.
CT Ravi, the local MLA and national general secretary of the BJP, responded to the incident by criticising the radical mindset of the populace and praising the Hindu worshippers for making it to the shrine despite the challenges.