Group clash in Ballari; one dead in firing | Bengaluru News
Ballari: A clash between two political factions in Havambavi area of the city resulted in stone-pelting late on Thursday evening. The subsequent lathicharge and gunfire led to the death of a Congress worker — Rajashekhar, a supporter of city MLA Nara Bharat Reddy. The incident occurred in front of Gangavathi MLA Gali Janardhana Reddy‘s residence in Havambavi.
In the run-up to the Valmiki statue unveiling event on Jan 3, banners were being put up throughout the city. A dispute arose between the supporters of Bharat Reddy and Janardhana Reddy when there was an attempt to place banners near the latter’s residence.The situation turned violent when some in the groups began hurling stones. When police arrived there, they hurled stones at them too. To restore order, police resorted to a lathicharge. Meanwhile, Janardhana Reddy, who had just returned from his constituency, found himself surrounded by Congress supporters. As chaos reigned, some of Bharat Reddy’s supporters fired four rounds, leading to the death of Rajashekhar.Janardhana Reddy said when he went to his constituency, Bharat Reddy’s supporters placed chairs in front of his house, causing disturbance. “When I came here, Bharat Reddy’s supporter Satish Reddy’s gunmen fired 4-5 rounds. This was an assassination attempt on me.”Holding up the empty casing of one of the bullets, Janardhana Reddy directly accused Bharat Reddy of attempting to kill him.Denying the charge, Bharat Reddy said Janardhana Reddy is making baseless allegations to cover up his own shortcomings.Following the incident, additional police has been deployed as a precautionary measure.New SP Pawan Nejjur, who took took charge on Thursday, is camping at the scene, and overseeing the situation.
