The Karnataka Police on Friday booked Bharatiya Janata Party MLA Gali Janardhan Reddy and 10 others in connection with clashes that erupted near his residence in Ballari a day earlier over the installation of banners, in which a Congress worker was killed, The Hindu reported.
The clashes broke out on Thursday between one group reportedly linked to Gali Janardhan Reddy, a former minister who represents the Gangavathi seat, and another associated with Ballari MLA from Congress Nara Bharath Reddy, The News Minute reported. The Congress worker who was killed was identified as Rajashekar.
According to a complaint filed by Chanal Shekhar, an associate of Nara Bharath Reddy, the incident occurred when banners were being erected in Ballari ahead of the unveiling of a Valmiki statue scheduled for Saturday, The Hindu reported.
Shekhar alleged that the banners put up along Siruguppa Road near Gali Janardhan Reddy’s residence in the Avvambhavi area were forcibly removed, triggering a confrontation.
He added that the Gangavathi MLA, along with his brother and their supporters, gathered at the spot armed with stones and wooden sticks. Congress workers were abused, threatened and assaulted, he said in his complaint.
Videos of the clashes circulating on social media showed a private gunman firing shots in the air, the Deccan Herald reported. The police also fired shots in the air and resorted to a lathi charge to disperse the crowd, the newspaper reported.
A first information report was registered on Friday based on Shekhar’s complaint, The Hindu reported.
Gali Janardhan Reddy was listed as the first accused in the case, while his brother Somasekhar Reddy was named as the second accused. Nine others were also booked, including former minister B Sriramulu and Ballari City Corporation Opposition leader Motkar Srinivas.
The case was registered under sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, including attempt to murder, voluntarily causing hurt, rioting, unlawful assembly, intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of peace and criminal intimidation, among others, The Hindu reported.
An unidentified police officer told PTI on Friday that security personnel have been deployed in the area to prevent any untoward incident.
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