MANGALURU: Karnataka police have arrested eight individuals in connection with the killing of Hindu activist Suhas Shetty, state home minister G Parameshwara confirmed on Saturday.
The arrested have been identified as Abdul Safwan, Niyaz, Mohammed Muzammil, Khalandar Shafi, Adil Mehroof , Nagaraj, Ranjith and Rizwan.
All eight suspects are currently in police custody.
In light of the incident and rising communal tensions in the coastal belt, Parameshwara also announced that the state government will soon establish an Anti-Communal Task Force to curb hate-driven violence and improve community safety.
The attack took place on Thursday night around 8.30 pm when Shetty was traveling with five associates—Sanjay, Prajwal, Anvith, Latheesh, and Shashank—near Kinnipadavu Cross.
Their vehicle was intercepted by a group of six armed men traveling in a Swift car and a pickup truck. The assailants targeted Shetty, assaulting him with lethal weapons and leaving him critically injured.
Despite being rushed to AJ Hospital, Shetty succumbed to his injuries. Police have registered a case of murder and are pursuing leads to determine the full motive and scope of the attack.
Shetty, who had five criminal cases against him—four in Mangaluru City and one in Dakshina Kannada—was a known rowdy sheeter.
His murder has raised concerns due to his alleged involvement in sensitive cases, including his role as one of the accused in the 2022 killing of Mohammed Fazil, a 23-year-old from Mangalapete in Katipalla.
Fazil’s death had previously heightened communal tensions in the coastal region.