The City Central Crime Branch (CCB) arrested Shivaji Rao Jadhav, a Hindi activist, from Davanagere from Karnataka for sending threat letter to more than 15 progressive Kannada authors and thinkers on Saturday. The accused had reportedly been sending threatening letters to authors including Banjagarer Jayaprakash and Vasundhara Bhupathi for the past two years. In the letters, Jadhav had threatened the victims for going against Hindutuva.
In the letters to authors including K. Veerabhadrappa, B.L. Venu, Banjagere Jayaprakash, B.T. Lalita Naik and Vasundhara Bhupathi, Jadhav told them to "count their last days", as reported by IANS.
Following this, the authors approached CM Siddaramaiah demanding swift action against the accused. Home Minister G Parameshwara ordered the police to provide suitable security to the authors.
Later, Karnataka government handed over the case to Special Wing CCB. The experts of the Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) were pressed into service and later it was found out that the letters were written by the same person. However, the miscreant had posted the letter from various districts and taluks.
After the arrest, Jadhav confessed to doing the crime. He claimed that he threatened the authors due to their anti-Hindu stand.
Later, the police produced him before the court. They also took him into custody for 10 days for interrogation.
The Karnataka government took the development seriously since it was reported after the murders of journalist Gauri Lankesh and activist - writer Prof. M.M. Kalburgi in Karnataka.
On September 5, 2017, Gauri Lankesh (55), Editor of "Lankesh Patrike", was shot dead outside her residence in Bengaluru. Of the seven bullets fired, three hit Lankesh - two in the chest and one in the forehead. Later, the government set up the SIT to probe the journalist-activist's killing.
On August 30, 2015, Kalburgi, a former vice-chancellor of Hampi University and well-known epigraphist, was shot dead at his residence in Kalyan Nagar in Dharwad, Karnataka.