Karnataka: Complaint submitted to reopen 2003 bomb case against activist Girish Mattannavar

Bengaluru, Oct 10 A complaint has been submitted to the Home Secretary and Bengaluru Police Commissioner seeking to reopen the sensational 2003 case of bomb planting in the Legislators’ Home by Girish Mattannavar, an activist at the forefront against temple authorities in the alleged Dharmasthala murders case.

Social activist Prashant Sambargi has now filed a fresh complaint seeking a reopening and reinvestigation of the case. He has also demanded that the case be handed over to the National Investigation Agency (NIA).

The complainant submitted 15 videos and other documents to authorities in support of his complaint.

It can be recalled that Mattannavar, who was then working as a Sub-Inspector at Narona Police Station in Kalaburagi district, was alleged to have planted the bombs while in Bengaluru for rifle-shooting training.

He allegedly planted four bombs in the fifth floor toilets of the Legislators’ Home and made a call to the police alerting them about the bombs. In the call, he reportedly claimed that the act was a crusade against corruption by politicians. The police later arrested him and others.

The local court had acquitted Mattannavar and the others in September 2016.

In his complaint, Sambargi stated, “Mattannavar had issued statements in multiple videos claiming that he prepared and planted the bombs. He had confessed to making the bombs. This is clear. Despite the case being quashed by the court, the emergence of fresh evidence and documents necessitates reinvestigation.”

Mattannavar had claimed that it was easy to make a bomb using gelatin and other materials. The complaint urged that Mattannavar be investigated by the NIA and that the planting of bombs at the Legislators’ Home be reinvestigated.

Mattannavar has demanded the arrest of Dharmadhikari and BJP Rajya Sabha member Veerendra Hegde and his family members in connection with Dharmasthala case. He is also in the forefront among the activists in the Dharmasthala case.

After the acquittal in the bomb case, Mattannavar had entered politics and joined the BJP. Later, he had quit the party and was involved in a movement against corruption in the state before actively participating in the agitation against the Dharmasthala temple management.

The police had arrested his associates Guranna Ammapura and Girish Babu in connection with the bomb case. The trial of the bomb case dragged on for 13 years and ended with acquittal of all three persons. The police maintained that the acquittal was the result of benefit of doubt for want of evidence.

Disclaimer: This post has been auto-published from an agency feed without any modifications to the text and has not been reviewed by an editor