JOIN USBangalore sees increase in murders this November
The City has witnessed a surge in the number of murders in November compared to the past two months.
As many as 17 people have been murdered in Bangalore in the past three weeks. A home-alone woman was smothered to death in a case of murder for gain; two working women were killed by their husbands; a customer was shot dead during a bank heist and a “whistleblower” and two real estate businessmen were hacked to death in broad daylight.
While the spurt in murders has caused anxiety among the people, the police top brass does not see any pattern in these murders. Additional Commissioner (Law and Order) T Suneel Kumar told Deccan Herald that he sees no particular pattern in these murders and these incidents have just taken place in a quick succession, similar to what was witnessed in August this year.
“We cannot attribute any particular reason for the increase in murders and also blame the policing for it. Many of these murders were committed by first time offenders and, in some incidents family members themselves were the suspects. It is difficult to prevent such murders,” he says.
However, the City police have already cracked nine of these murders. Of the nearly dozen-and-a-half murders, only two were carried out by organised gangs and those with a criminal history. Only two were murders for gain. The brutal murder of Lingaraju, a RTI activist, could have been prevented had he been careful and informed the police about the threat to his life, a senior officer said.
The murder of notorious rowdy Karthik was the result of an intra-gang rivalry. Had there been a security guard posted at the Corporation Bank, Chikkabanavara Branch, the robbery and the consequential murder could have been prevented, feels Suneel Kumar.
Security measures
Banks have been repeatedly advised to have proper security on their premises. But, they have neglected the advice. However, the bank robbery case was solved within four hours, he added.
He said Bangalore’s crime rate was much lower than that of the other metros, according to the National Crime Records Bureau statistics.
“Bangalore is safer than metros such as New Delhi and Mumbai. Crime scenario here is not as bad as is being made out,” he says. Another senior police official, who has had worked in other cities too, said that Bangalore had always been prone to murders, though he could not point out the reason for it.
“Nowadays murders take place for trivial reasons,” he said. He cites two cases this month to prove his point. A Nepali security guard at an Ayyappa Temple in Kaggadasapura was stabbed in his neck by unidentified men on November 18.
The assailants had broken open the “hundi” (offering box) of the temple and tried to decamp with around Rs 1,000. When the guard resisted, they killed him, all for Rs 1,000. In the other case, a man was murdered for just Rs 100.