Kerala: Missing Dentist found dead, 5 held for abetment of suicide

Kasargod: Following the death of a Badiadka-based dentist who was accused of sexual harassment, the Badiadka police have arrested five persons, including two IUML (Indian Union Muslim League) leaders, on charges of abetment of suicide.

The deceased doctor has been identified as a 57-year-old dentist, Dr S Krishnamurthy who was found dead on Thursday near the Udupi railway station. The police stated that the body was found in pieces as it was hit by a train. His wife had filed a missing complaint on November 8. 

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A 32-year-old woman had earlier filed a complaint of sexual harassment against the doctor. After that, around 5 persons visited the doctor's clinic in Badiadka around 11 am on Tuesday and demanded a public apology from him for harassing the woman. The doctor responded that he needed time to think about it, as per a media report in the On Manorama. 

After leaving the clinic, they again confronted the doctor after half an hour, threatening that they would make the woman file a police complaint if he did not give a public apology. The doctor then left the place on his motorcycle. The doctor's bike was found at the Kumbla railway station, 18km from Badiadka at around 3 pm on Tuesday. 

When the doctor's motorcycle was discovered, the woman filed a complaint of sexual harassment against the doctor, and his wife filed a missing person's complaint. The police registered both cases. 

The doctor's body was found by the police in the evening at Udupi railway station, 100km away, in Karnataka. According to Badiadka station house officer Aswith S Karanmayil, five persons were arrested under the charges of Section 306 (abetment of suicide). The family members of the doctor reached Kundapur morgue on the morning of November 10 and identified the body, as per a media report in the Daiji World. 

The five accused persons have been identified as Muhammed Haneefa alias Anwar Ozone, former panchayat member and secretary of IUML's Badiadka panchayat unit; Ali Thuppakkal, secretary of IUML's Kumbadaje panchayat unit, Muhammed Shihabudeen of Annadukka in Kumbadaje panchayat, Ashraf of Kumbadaje, and Umarul Farook of Vidyagiri. 

In the aftermath of the incident, various right-wing organizations began protesting demanding the police find the doctor's body. The Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) called for a dawn-to-dusk hartal in Badiadka panchayat on Friday, while demanding the police take action against those responsible for the doctor's death. Similarly, the Brahmana Sabha, an organisation of Brahmins held a protest march on Thursday morning with a demand to find the missing doctor and action against those who threatened the doctor. On Thursday, the Indian Dental Association in Kasargod also organized protests following the doctor's disappearance. 

The police stated that the hartal did not cause any problems, and all the shops in the market were closed with only the private vehicles visible on the road. Stating that the situation of hartal was only present in the market, another police officer said, "Shops are open in the rest of the panchayat." 

The post-mortem of the body was conducted at Manipal, and the mortal remains were sent to Badiadka. A police case was registered in this regard at the Badiadka police station eventually.

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