Mangaluru City Police have filed three separate cases against individuals and groups for spreading false and inflammatory content online following the mob lynching of a daily wage worker near Kudupu.

City Police Commissioner Anupam Agrawal confirmed that misleading information was being deliberately circulated with the aim of sparking unrest and disrupting communal peace. “Provocative and baseless content linked to the incident was found on multiple platforms,” he stated.

At Konaje police station, a case under Sections 192, 353(1), and 353(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) was registered based on a deceptive post shared in the WhatsApp group ‘BEARY MUSLIM ARMY.’ The message falsely claimed that the murder weapon—a bat stump—had been recovered and questioned the identity of the perpetrators.

Another case, under Section 353(2) of the BNS, was lodged at Barke police station after misleading content appeared on the Instagram handle ‘beary-royal-nawab,’ attempting to manipulate public sentiment.

A third case was registered by Kankanady Town police under Section 353(1)(b) of the BNS. In this instance, the WhatsApp group ‘Maikallo Beary’ was found circulating inciteful content. Zakir Hussain of Munnur village in Ullal taluk was identified as the administrator behind the post.

Commissioner Agrawal reiterated the police department’s firm stance: “Strict action will be taken against anyone spreading fake news or inciting communal tension through social media.”