Rs 67 lakh debt, a blown-up SUV: Karnataka Police crack Bagalkot blast case

A farmer in Karnataka's Bagalkot district allegedly detonated an explosion targeting the SUV of a liquor store owner and his brother, demanding repayment of a debt that had ballooned to Rs 67 lakh. The blast in Jamkhandi reduced the Mahindra XUV 300 to a mangled heap, injuring a passing motorcyclist. The payment dispute arose as the farmer, Shivannand Basappa Jelli, had borrowed Rs 40 lakh from Athani’s brother, with the outstanding amount now exceeding the Rs 67 lakh figure.

The liquor store owner and his brother were allegedly demanding Jelli either repay the money or forfeit four acres of his land. After the attack, Athani reportedly received a warning message on August 6, which led investigators to trace the handset to a second-hand phone purchased in Belagavi. Subsequent examination of mobile tower data and CCTV footage identified four suspects, who were subsequently arrested in Vijayapura district.

The primary suspect, Jelli, claimed to have set off the explosives using a capacitor connected to 100 feet of wire from unused explosive material stored from a borewell excavation two years prior. The explosion was powerful enough to topple the SUV, scattering debris over a 40-meter radius while leaving the fuel tank intact, thereby preventing a fire.

The 22-year-old motorcyclist, Yallaling Pujari, sustained injuries during the blast. The Bagalkot police, collaborating with Mahindra & Mahindra and forensic experts, analyzed CCTV footage to establish the sequence of events. The case does not appear to be connected to the recent NIA investigation into an explosives supply network in the district.