Pro-Hindutva activist threatened, youth held    

MANGALURU:  Dakshina Kannada district police have arrested a 21-year-old man for allegedly threatening Prashanth Poonja, a resident of Bellare village in Sullia taluk.

Abdul Saprith alias Abdul Safriz, a member of SDPI, was arrested from Bellare village. According to a complaint filed by Prashanth, a manager of a lodge, he received a call from the accused on Saturday who abused him. 

The accused is the brother of Shafiq, an accused in the murder of BJP youth wing leader Praveen Nettaru while Prashanth is a pro-Hindutva activist. Pro-Hindutva group members after learning about the incident, gathered in front of Bellare police station. 

SP of Dakshina Kannada district Rishikesh Sonawane said that the accused has been booked under IPC sections 504, 506 (criminal intimidation) after a court permission was obtained, and he has been arrested.

“It is a case of mischief and there was no death threat. They engaged in a verbal spat, and no personal rivalry is involved, nor is there any connection to the Praveen Nettaru case,” he clarified. Dakshina Kannada BJP president Sudarshan M demanded action against the accused and urged the police to keep a watch on SDPI members.