Puttur: The 5th Additional District and Sessions Court in Puttur has sentenced two men to life imprisonment for the 2019 murder of Hindu Jagarana Vedike general secretary Karthik Suvarna Merla during a Ganeshotsava celebration at Sampya.

The court sentenced Preethesh Shetty of Ullal and Kiran Rai of Sampya to life imprisonment and imposed a fine of Rs 3 lakh each. The verdict was pronounced by Judge Sadananda Nagappa Naik.

The court also directed that Rs 5.90 lakh from the fine collected from the convicted accused be paid as compensation to Karthik Merla’s mother.

Karthik killed during Ganeshotsava celebrations

Karthik Suvarna Merla, 27, was actively associated with the Hindu Jagarana Vedike. On the night of September 3, 2019, he attended a public Ganeshotsava programme held at the premises of Puttur Sri Mahalingeshwara Temple.

He later travelled to his native village of Sampya to participate in a Ganeshotsava procession. During the celebrations, he went near a pandal to watch a Yakshagana performance organised as part of the festivities.

According to the prosecution case, a quarrel broke out between Karthik and the accused during the celebrations. The altercation subsequently escalated into an attack.

The prosecution alleged that brothers Charan Raj Rai and Kiran Rai restrained Karthik while Preethesh Shetty attacked him with a sharp weapon.

Karthik suffered serious injuries in the attack. He was rushed to a hospital in Puttur, where doctors declared him dead.

Following a complaint filed by Karthik’s uncle Keshava Suvarna, Puttur Rural Police registered a case and arrested four accused persons. A chargesheet was later filed before the court.

Two accused sentenced to life

After hearing the case, the court found Preethesh Shetty and Kiran Rai guilty of the murder and sentenced both to life imprisonment.

In addition to the life sentence, the court imposed a fine of Rs 3 lakh each on the two convicted accused.

The court also dealt with an offence under Section 341 of the Indian Penal Code relating to wrongful restraint. For this offence, the accused were sentenced to one month in prison and fined Rs 500.

The court ordered that Rs 5.90 lakh from the fine collected from the convicted men be paid to Karthik’s mother.

Public Prosecutor Jayanti Bhat represented the prosecution in the case.

One accused murdered, another acquitted

There were four accused in the case. The second accused, Charan Raj Rai, who was the brother of Kiran Rai, was subsequently murdered in June 2022.

The fourth accused, Steven Monthero of Attavar in Mangaluru, was acquitted after the charges against him were not proved before the court.

With the latest judgment, two of the accused have been convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment, while proceedings against the remaining accused have been affected by the developments in the case.

Charan Raj Rai murdered in 2022

Charan Raj Rai was stabbed to death at Perlampady on June 4, 2022, nearly three years after Karthik Merla was killed.

According to the information provided in the case background, the 2022 killing was reportedly linked to a revenge attack. Charan was reportedly preparing to open a medical shop in Perlampady when unidentified persons allegedly arrived on a motorcycle and attacked him in the evening.

Police subsequently arrested accused persons in connection with Charan’s murder. That case is currently under trial.

The two separate cases have remained connected in public attention because of the involvement of Charan Raj Rai, who was an accused in the 2019 Karthik Merla murder case before he was himself killed in 2022.

The Puttur court’s latest verdict brings a significant development in the criminal proceedings arising from Karthik Merla’s death during the Ganeshotsava celebrations in 2019.