IANS Year Ender 2025: Stampede, murders, cyber scams spotlight Karnataka for wrong reasons

Bengaluru, Dec 28 From the stampede that claimed 11 lives during celebrations of Royal Challengers Bengaluru's maiden IPL victory, to the biggest cyber fraud, in which cybercriminals extorted a whopping Rs 31.83 crore, Karnataka was in the national spotlight in 2025 for a series of grim incidents. A daring daylight bank robbery in Bengaluru, brutal murders of toddlers, and crimes against women further added to the year's disturbing crime graph.

Adding to the grim list, the brutal killing of a seven-month pregnant woman by her own father in Hubballi towards the end of the year, in an alleged honour killing, raised serious questions, particularly as Karnataka is considered one of the country's progressive states.

The stampede tragedy at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru occurred on June 4, 2025, during celebrations marking Royal Challengers Bengaluru's maiden IPL title win. What was meant to be a historic celebration turned into a national tragedy due to massive overcrowding and alleged management failures.

As many as 11 people were killed, and more than 50 were injured in the incident. Most of the victims were young fans and students, including a 13-year-old girl.

The tragedy dampened the spirits of cricket lovers, who were later disappointed by the denial of permission to host the Vijay Hazare Trophy matches at the Chinnaswamy Stadium. Fans are now hoping for a revival of cricketing action in the city during the 2026 IPL season.

Bengaluru also witnessed one of the largest cash-only robberies in its history, involving Rs 7.11 crore, which took place on November 19, 2025, in the heart of the city. The heist drew attention for its "filmy" execution, with the perpetrators impersonating government officials.

The Bengaluru City Police cracked the case within 60 hours through a massive operation involving more than 200 personnel and recovered nearly Rs 7.1 crore of the stolen money. The suspects, including a policeman, were tracked across multiple states.

Another crime that shook Karnataka involved the murder of a five-year-old girl in Hubballi. The accused, Ritesh Kumar, a 35-year-old migrant worker from Patna in Bihar, had been doing odd jobs in the city for several years. At around 10.40 a.m. on a Sunday, he allegedly lured the child with snacks, took her into a bathroom where he attempted to sexually assault her, and later murdered her before fleeing the spot.

CCTV footage showing the accused luring the child and carrying her away from her house deeply disturbed parents across the state. The accused was later killed in a police encounter after attempting to escape. Three police personnel were injured during the incident on April 13, 2025.

Official statistics released by the state government show a steady rise in Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) cases, from 2,197 in 2019 to 2,165 in 2020, 2,884 in 2021, 3,209 in 2022, 3,900 in 2023, 4,061 in 2024, and 4,096 in 2025.

Another incident that drew national attention was the molestation of a woman returning home late at night in Bengaluru. In April 2025, a woman was stalked and groped by an unidentified man in a residential lane in Sadduguntepalya while returning home with another woman. The incident, captured on CCTV and widely circulated online, triggered public outrage.

The assault occurred around 2 a.m. on April 4, 2025, in a narrow, deserted alley under the jurisdiction of the Sadduguntepalya police station. Karnataka Home Minister G. Parameshwara's remark that "such incidents do happen in big cities" sparked backlash, though he later said his comments were misinterpreted.

The accused, identified as 26-year-old Santosh, was arrested on April 14, 2025. He reportedly confessed to the crime and said that he was drunk at the time. He was booked under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, including molestation, sexual harassment, and stalking.

In another shocking case, a woman named Lakshmidevamma was murdered and her body cut into 19 pieces, which were scattered across 19 different locations in the Tumakuru district. Her son-in-law, a dentist, along with two accomplices, was arrested in connection with the crime, reportedly over allegations that she interfered in his marriage.

According to government data, molestation and rape cases have shown a decline over the past three years. A total of 6,489 molestation cases were reported in 2023, followed by 6,334 in 2024 and 5,324 in 2025. Rape cases also showed a downward trend, with 600 cases reported in 2023, 632 in 2024, and 517 in 2025.

Revenge killings in communally sensitive coastal Karnataka made national headlines this year and raised concerns over law and order. These developments prompted the state government to establish a Special Action Force in the coastal region and pass the controversial Karnataka Hate Speech and Hate Crimes (Prevention) Bill, 2025.

In Mangaluru, a major revenge killing occurred in May 2025 with the brutal hacking of Suhas Shetty, a rowdy-sheeter, Hindu activist, and an accused in the 2022 murder of Mohammadad Fazil. The incident at Kinnipadavu triggered tensions and fears of retaliatory violence, echoing previous communal clashes in the region.

Suhas Shetty was hacked to death on May 1 by a gang armed with machetes and swords while he was travelling in a car with associates in the limits of the Bajpe police station. He was a Bajrang Dal activist and the prime accused in the murder of Mohammad Fazil, who was killed on July 28, 2022, allegedly in retaliation for the murder of BJP worker Praveen Kumar Nettaru during the height of the hijab row.

The murder of Suhas Shetty triggered a series of revenge killings and stabbing incidents in the coastal belt, with communal tension threatening to spread to other parts of the state. Karnataka Police arrested 12 accused in the case, and following demands from BJP leaders and Union Ministers, the Centre handed over the investigation to the National Investigation Agency (NIA). The BJP alleged the involvement of the banned outfit Popular Front of India and a possible foreign hand.

Weeks later, a 42-year-old pickup driver and mosque secretary, Imtiyaz, was hacked to death in broad daylight near Ira Kodi in Bantwal taluk as an act of revenge linked to the Suhas Shetty murder.

However, overall state statistics show a decline in murder cases, from 1,365 in 2022 to 1,293 in 2023, 1,208 in 2024, and 1,131 in 2025.

Karnataka also witnessed one of the biggest cyber fraud cases in Bengaluru on November 17, when a 57-year-old senior IT executive was allegedly cheated of Rs 31.83 crore over a year in a meticulously planned "digital arrest" scam. The fraudsters posed as officials from a courier company, the Cyber Crime Department, the Central Bureau of Investigation, and the Reserve Bank of India.

This is the largest amount lost by a single victim to a digital arrest scam in the state. According to the complaint, the victim first received a call on September 15, 2024, claiming that a parcel booked in her name in Mumbai contained prohibited items. Though she denied any connection, she was told her identity had been misused and was transferred to fake cybercrime officials.

The victim was threatened, manipulated, and kept under constant digital surveillance, even during hospitalisation, until the fraudsters disappeared in March 2025.

The government data showed that 22,255 cyber fraud cases were reported in 2023, 22,479 in 2024, and 13,104 in 2025.

Towards the end of the year, the alleged honour killing of a seven-month pregnant woman by her father and relatives in Haveri district shook the state. This was followed by a major tragedy on December 25, when at least seven people were burnt alive after a sleeper coach bus caught fire following a collision with a container truck in Chitradurga district in the early hours, leaving Karnataka reeling once again.

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