Yellapur: A 30-year-old Dalit woman was brutally stabbed to death in public in Yellapur town of Uttara Kannada district on Saturday, allegedly by a man known to her, triggering tension and protests in the area, police said.
The victim has been identified as Ranjitha Bhanasode, a resident of Kalamma Nagar in Yellapur. According to the police, the accused, Rafique Imamsab, who lived in the same locality, allegedly attacked her with a knife on Saturday afternoon while she was returning home from work.
Superintendent of Police Deepan M N said the accused was later found dead by hanging from a tree in a forested area near Yellapur on Sunday, suggesting suicide. Police have launched a detailed investigation into both the murder and the accused’s death.
Preliminary investigations indicate that Rafique and Ranjitha had known each other since their school days. Police said the accused had allegedly been pressuring the woman to marry him. When she refused, he is believed to have carried out the attack in public.
Ranjitha was married around 12 years ago to Sachin Katera from Solapur in Maharashtra and had a 10-year-old son. She had been living separately and was staying with her family in Yellapur, where she worked as a mid-day meal helper at a government school. Police said the accused frequently visited her house for meals, but tensions escalated after he insisted on marriage, which Ranjitha and her family opposed.
The killing has sparked communal tension in the town, with several Hindu outfits calling for a Yellapur bandh on Sunday. Protests were held outside the Yellapur police station, with demonstrators alleging a delay in arresting the accused. Some groups termed the incident as a case of “Love Jihad,” a claim police have not officially endorsed.
Sri Ram Sena chief Pramod Muthalik described the incident as targeted violence against vulnerable women, while BJP state president B Y Vijayendra is expected to meet the victim’s family.
In view of the sensitive situation, police have deployed additional security forces in Yellapur to maintain law and order and prevent any untoward incidents.
