Mangaluru: The second additional district and sessions court has sentenced Dharmaraj Suvarna, 50, to life imprisonment for murdering Muthu Basavaraj Waddar alias Mudukappa, 39, a native of Bagalkot, over a dispute involving a mobile phone.Judge Jagadeesh VN pronounced the verdict on Monday and imposed a Rs 15,000 fine on the accused, with a further six months’ simple imprisonment if the fine is not paid. According to police, the incident occurred near the seashore behind the Bobbarya Daivasthana at Thota Bengre, within Panambur police station limits, around 10 am on Sept 21, 2024. Based on a complaint filed by Hanumantha Durgappa Waddar, Panambur police registered a murder case under Section 103(1) of the BNS.The accused and the victim were acquainted with each other. Police said a dispute broke out after the victim allegedly took a newly purchased mobile phone belonging to Suvarna and damaged it without returning it. During the altercation, Suvarna allegedly assaulted Muthu Basavaraj with a wooden club, killing him. The accused was arrested on Sept 26, 2024, around 3 am in the jurisdiction of Chombala police station in Kozhikode district, Kerala, and produced before the court.Panambur police inspector Mohammed Saleem Abbas conducted part of the investigation. After provisions of the SC/ST (prevention of atrocities) Act were added to the case, the further investigation was handed over to ACP K Srikanth of the North Sub-Division, Panambur. He completed the investigation and filed the chargesheet before the court.Special public prosecutor Jyothi Pramod Nayak represented the state.
