Opposition BJP stages protest demanding CBI probe into Jain monk murder case

Opposition BJP legislators on Wednesday staged a sit-in demonstration near Gandhi statue in Vidhana Soudha, the seat of the Karnataka legislature, here against the brutal murder of Jain monk Acharya Sri Kamakumara Nandi Maharaj in Belagavi.

Led by former chief minister Basavaraj Bommai, the legislators sat near the statue and raised slogans against the "deteriorating" law and order situation in the state.

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The BJP said ever since the Congress came to power in May, another round of murders of Hindu figures have started and the killing of the Jain monk was a glaring example.

The opposition party has demanded a CBI inquiry into the murder case saying it required an impartial investigation.

The Jain monk heading a monastery at Hirekodi in Chikkodi taluk of Belagavi district was chopped into pieces and his dismembered body parts were dumped in a defunct borewell.

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Two people, Narayana Basappa Madi and Hassan Dalayath, have been arrested in the case. Police suspect money-related matters were behind the murder.

Former ministers R Ashoka, V Sunil Kumar Dr C N ashwath Narayan and many others joined the protest.

Later, they took out a march towards Raj Bhavan to submit a memorandum to Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot.