Bengaluru: Education entrepreneur attacked; six rival schools under lens

BENGALURU: Three car-borne miscreants assaulted a 43-year-old education entrepreneur on Thursday. Nageshwara Rao, manager of HSLN Higher Primary School in Hesaraghatta, was assaulted on Thursday morning near Kumbalakunte. Rao suspects his rival school managements may have orchestrated the attack on him.
Police said Rao, who runs Dr Rao Global School, Gauribidanur, had taken HSLN Higher Primary School on lease a year ago. He along with wife Sridevi had gone to Gauribidanur on Wednesday. While she stayed back at Gauribidanur as it was admission season, Rao returned alone in his car on Thursday morning.
When Rao reached Kumbalakunte at 8.30am, his car was rear-ended by another four-wheeler. When he stopped his car to check what had happened, a third car arrived at the spot and three miscreants wielding machetes alighted from it. They stabbed Rao all over his body before driving away.
Rao was taken to a nearby hospital and was later moved to a hospital in Hebbal.
Doddabelavangala police have registered cases of criminal conspiracy and attempt-to-murder against six private schools in Hesaraghatta and three unidentified miscreants. A special team has been formed to trace the trio and the two cars involved.
A senior police officer said Rao alleged the managements of six private schools in Hesaraghatta had hired goons to eliminate him over professional jealousy. "He said hundreds of students from the six private schools had joined his school. We've named all six schools in the FIR based on Rao's complaint. We'll summon the managements of those schools to record their statement," said Mohan Kumar, deputy superintendent of police (Doddaballapura).