(L-R) Praveen Nettaru and Shafi Bellare. File pics/Twitter
Bellare, who is currently in jail, has filed his nomination through his supporters. SDPI workers held a rally in Puttur after filing Bellare’s nomination
Shafi Bellare, prime accused in the murder of Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM) leader Praveen Nettaru, has filed his nomination from the Puttur constituency for upcoming Assembly elections in Karnataka. Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI), which is considered as the political arm of the outlawed Popular Front of India (PFI), has fielded Shafi Bellare from the Dakshina Kannada district’s seat.
Bellare, who is currently in jail, has filed his nomination through his supporters. SDPI workers held a rally in Puttur after filing Bellare’s nomination.
Notably, Shafi Bellare is currently in jail after his arrest by the NIA in the Praveen Nettaru murder case. According to the NIA chargesheet, Shafi conducted a recce of Praveen Nettaru’s house and gave information about him to the killers.
After SDPI decided to field a murder accused, the move invariably drew flak from a lot of quarters, including the Bharatiya Janata Party.
Praveen’s family members have also raised objections to Shafi contesting the election from Puttur. According to a Udayavani report, Praveen’s father Shekhar Poojary has demanded that a murder accused like Shafi should not be given permission to contest election at any cost.
On the evening of July 26 last year, bike-borne assailants attacked Praveen Nettaru, a leader of the BJP Yuva Morcha, in Bellare village under the Sullia taluk of the district. He was hacked to death with sharp weapons. The leader of the BJP Yuva Morcha formerly had a broiler shop in Bellare, close to Puttur. Following Nettaru’s murder, unrest broke out in the Dakshina Kannada district. Soon after, state Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai handed over the Praveen Nettaru murder case to the NIA.
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