The Commercial Street police in Bengaluru have arrested Basavaraj Padukote, the State president of Namma Karnataka Sene, in connection with the assault on Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA) officials during an anti-encroachment drive under the Safe Footpath Campaign in Shivajinagar.
The police identified Mr. Padukote as the main accused, and a total of 12 people have been arrested in the case.
According to Bengaluru police, he allegedly led the attack on officials who were carrying out an encroachment removal drive. The police also said Mr. Padukote has a criminal background.
On Tuesday, high drama erupted near the Shivajinagar Bus Stand in Central Bengaluru when officials of the GBA began a footpath clearance drive, with a group of people launching an attack on the officers, assaulting them with chairs and helmets, and using pepper spray to chase them away. Five people were injured in the incident, including Assistant Executive Engineer Madhav Rao.
Meanwhile, a Bengaluru court granted the police custody of five accused who were arrested.
The five accused — Basavaraj Padukote, 56, Raghu, 28, Basavaraj, 28, Parthiban, 23, and Parashu Ram, 27 — were produced before the court, which remanded them in police custody from July 22 to July 25 to facilitate further investigation.
The remaining accused in the case are Shankar, 52, Bharat, 25, Ranjan, 19, Kiran, 34, Kotresh, 26, Mujahid Ahmed, 39, and Rangaswamy, 49.
According to the police, investigators would interrogate the five accused in custody to ascertain the sequence of events, identify the role played by each accused, recover additional evidence, and establish whether the assault was premeditated.
The GBA Employees’ Welfare Association urged the civic body’s Chief Commissioner to provide adequate police protection for officials and staff during future footpath encroachment clearance drives. The association has also demanded the immediate withdrawal of marshals, alleging that they have not been assisting officials during such operations.
City Police Commissioner Seemant Kumar Singh said that the matter has been taken very seriously and strict action would be initiated. He also said that necessary protection would be given to GBA officials on duty.
Published - July 22, 2026 07:58 am IST