Surathkal trader in Mangaluru killed, curb orders till Tuesday

MANGALURU: Hours after a 43-year-old businessman was hacked to death in front of his shop in Surathkal late Saturday night, police on Sunday imposed prohibitory orders under Section 144 of CrPC in four police station limits of Mangaluru city, brought in additional forces and KSRP platoons and prohibited sale of liquor till 10am on December 27.
City police commissioner N Shashi Kumar said the prohibitory orders have been clamped on Surathkal, Bajpe, Kavoor and Panambur police station limits of Mangaluru since it is a sensitive region and to avoid any disruption in law and order. The murder is the latest in a series of incidents rocking the coastal region of the state.
After murder, uneasy calm in Surathkal
People gathered in large numbers on Sunday, to pay their final respect to Abdul Jaleel,43, who was hacked to death by two miscreants in the Surathkal police station limits. Meanwhile, an uneasy calm prevailed in Surathkal, following the incident. A majority of the shops and business establishments remained closed, following the imposition of prohibitory orders.
A protest was held when the victim's body was being taken out for burial. The public protested that they would not allow the burial to be held, until the accused were arrested.
Senior community leaders, including Karnataka Waqf Board chairman N K Muhammed Shafi Sa-adi, former MLA BA Mohiuddin Bava and others, along with a team of top police officials of the city led by the commissioner N Shashi Kumar, tried their best to convince the public, following which the last rites were held peacefully.
The police convinced the gathering that the accused would be arrested at the earliest, and that the probe was moving in the right direction. The family members and Muslim leaders demanded justice. The leaders said that the community was repeatedly facing injustice. They demanded that the real accused should be arrested, and that they should not be released on bail. In the past, there were several instances where the accused were let out on bail easily.
When the public gheraoed the city police commissioner, he convinced the members present there, that he would be in Surathkal till the real accused were arrested. "An impartial probe from all angles is being conducted. Have faith in us. We will solve the case at the earliest," he told the protestors. Abdul Jaleel was laid to rest at the burial grounds in the Panjimogaru Jumma Masjid premise near Kulur. From the hospital, the body was taken to his house in Krishnapura in Surathkal, and then to Panjimogaru.
Meanwhile, Abdul Hameed, a family member of the victim, said that the deceased did not have any enmity with anyone. "He had not even approached a police station in his life so far. He had a close bond with members of all communities. Jaleel was only minding his business in the shop, and was not associated with any organisation. We do not doubt anyone. Those responsible for this crime should be arrested and punished," he said. Several political parties and organisations have condemned the incident, and the frequent murders in the district, and demanded that the accused be arrested at the earliest.