Mixed pesticide into school's water tank to oust Muslim headmaster; three Hanuman Sena activists arrested

BENGALURU: Three people have been arrested for allegedly mixing pesticide into a school’s water tank in an attempt to remove a Muslim headmaster from his post. The incident took place in Hulikatti village of Belagavi district, Karnataka.

Sulaiman Gorinayak, who has been serving as the headmaster of the government school in the village for the past 13 years, was the target of the conspiracy. The arrested people are Krishna Madar, Sagar Patil, and Maganagouda Patil.

The incident came to light on July 14 after 13 students of the school fell ill and required medical treatment. Investigations revealed that the children had consumed water from the contaminated tank. Sagar, who runs a dhaba in the area, and Maganagouda Patil had been demanding the removal of Sulaiman Gorinayak from his position for a long time. When their efforts failed, they allegedly hatched a plan to poison the water to incite communal tension and have the headmaster dismissed, police said. The forensic team recovered a bottle used to mix the pesticide from near the water tank.

The probe led police to a Class 5 student who was allegedly threatened and coerced by the main accused, Krishna, to pour the pesticide into the tank. Based on the child’s statement, all three accused were arrested. Police confirmed that the trio are members of the extremist Hindu group Hanuman Sena.

Chief Minister Siddaramaiah expressed shock over the incident. The arrested individuals have been remanded to Hindalga jail. Authorities said the children who had consumed the contaminated water have since recovered.