Man arrested for stabbing priest to death in Hubballi-Dharwad City

Dharwad (Karnataka) [India], July 23 (ANI): A man was arrested for allegedly stabbing a priest to death on July 21 in the Hubballi-Dharwad City of Karnataka, the police said on Tuesday.

The murder case of the Vaishno Devi temple priest, identified as Devendrappa Mahadevappa Vanahalli (63), was solved after the accused was arrested on Monday night.

The Hubballi-Dharwad Police nabbed the accused on Monday night and identified the suspect as Santosh Tippanna Bhojgar (44), a resident of G Adda in the Kamaripet police station limits.

Speaking to ANI Police Commissioner N Shashi Kumar, said, “Devendrappa Mahadevappa Vanahalli, a 63-year-old priest was brutally stabbed to death on Sunday evening.”

The police commissioner revealed that the accused killed Devendrappa on suspicion that the priest had performed religious rituals on his family, leading to disturbing incidents.

In recent years, the accused’s three brothers and father had died, and his mother had suffered paralysis. Bhojgar believed that these events were consequences of the deceased priest’s rituals, who conducted them at the request of Bhojgar’s relatives.

Santosh Bhojgar had previously attempted to kill the priest in 2022 by stabbing him, but Devendrappa had survived the attack.

Despite their best efforts, the Vidyanagar police failed to identify or apprehend the accused at that time.

Since then, the accused had been keeping a close watch on the priest’s movements, waiting for an opportunity to strike again. On Sunday, after confirming that the priest was alone, Santosh stabbed him and fled the scene.

The accused did not flee the city and was arrested near his house based on a tip-off.

Commissioner Kumar stated that while the suspect has confessed to the crime and provided a motive, the police will conduct further investigations to explore all the angles of the murder.

Further details on the matter are awaited. (ANI)