Accused in the murder of Praveen Nettaru may be hiding in Arab countries: an NIA source

According to authorities, the accused may have sought refuge in Arab nations at a time when the NIA is ready to make a final move in the Praveen Kumar Nettaru murder case.

If the main suspects, Kallumutlu residents Umar Farooq and Mustafa Paichar, do not turn themselves up by June 30, the NIA Special court has authorised the seizure of their homes and property.

The main suspects are Tuffail M.H. and Abubaquar Siddique. The NIA has been attempting to apprehend them in relation to the killing. The agency has set a reward of Rs 14 lakh for information leading to these accused individuals. The NIA has set a reward of Rs 5 lakh each for information leading to Tuffail and Mohammad Mustafa. Abubaquar Siddiqui and Umar Farooq are each subject to a Rs 2 lakh prize.

According to sources, Tuffail was a member of the Popular Front of India (PFI) assault squad and was engaged in the communal violence that occurred in Kodagu. After the NIA took over the case, the accused relocated to Arab countries.

With the aid of terrorist group members and supporters, they had fled across Nepal.

The NIA teams had travelled to Nepal to arrest the suspects, but they were unsuccessful since the suspects were able to escape the border before the police could catch up with them.

The two main suspects in the murder of Praveen Nettaru in Karnataka had been warned by the NIA that if they did not surrender to it by Friday, it would take their property. Umar Farooq and Mustafa Paichar, both residents of Kallu Mutlu in the Dakshina Kannada district, are the two absconding accused people, and the NIA has also announced monetary prizes for information about their locations.

Since the gruesome murder of the BJP Yuva Morcha activist on July 26, 2022, the two have eluded capture despite the NIA’s intensive search efforts across Kerala and Karnataka.

Additionally, notifications about the confiscation of the accused’s property have been put by the NIA officials on the homes of the suspects.

The investigation agency had presented evidence to an NIA court in Bengaluru and requested permission to take harsh action against the two offenders.

The court gave approval on Wednesday and lifted the order that the two main defendants’ possessions would be seized if they did not turn themselves up by Friday. On Wednesday, the directive was issued. Since taking over the case from the Karnataka Police, the NIA has made 14 arrests, filed a 1,500-page charge sheet against 20 defendants with the court, and started looking for six more suspects who have fled.

240 witnesses’ testimonies are included in the charge sheet. In the recently completed Assembly elections in Karnataka, the Socialist Democratic Party of India (SDPI) has awarded its ticket to Shafi Bellare, a defendant in the murder case. In the state, the development has sparked discussion. From a cell, he challenged but fell short.

On July 26, 2022, in Bellare, a BJP Yuva Morcha activist named Nettaru was fatally hacked amid the height of the hijab issue in the region. His murder sparked retaliation murders and a string of stabbing events.