VHP, HJV allege PFI hand in Suhas Shetty murder

Mangaluru: Expressing deep concerns about the involvement of the banned Popular Front of India (PFI) in the killing of Hindutva activist and rowdy-sheeter Suhas Shetty, both Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) and Hindu Jagran Vedike (HJV) reiterated their demand on Monday for an NIA investigation to uncover the facts surrounding the incident.
HJV Prantha Pramukh KT Ullas and VHP leader Sharan Pumpwell told reporters on Monday that many similarities were found between the modus operandi of murders carried out by PFI and that of Shetty. "There is some big force and funding behind it. We strongly suspect the role of PFI behind this targeted killing," Ullas alleged.
The murder does not seem to be a retaliatory act for Mohammed Fazil's death. A substantial organisation with significant financial backing appears to be involved. The PFI seems to have orchestrated this calculated assassination. The CCTV footage of Suhas's murder shows that the assailants were not in a hurry, and how the locals were found at the scene of the crime indicates that it was a planned murder, said Ullas.
He suspected the role of Mustafa and Kabir, who were accused in the Prashanth Poojary murder case, in Suhas Shetty's murder. He raised suspicion over Naushad, an accused in the Sukhananda Shetty murder case, funding the murder. Safwan, an accused in the Suhas Shetty murder case, was a tenant in the house of a PFI member, he alleged.
Ullas also raised suspicion over a police constable having tipped the assailants about Suhas's movements. Suhas's friends and mother also complained that he was harassed by the constable with repeated phone calls. Police also allegedly told Suhas not to carry any tools in his vehicle, he said.
On the involvement of Ranjith and Nagaraj in the Suhas Shetty murder, Ullas said that they have no criminal antecedents. "The assailants involved two Hindus in the crime only to divert the investigation's direction," he added.