Karnataka: Four men arrested for vandalism of Hampi World heritage site

Hampi: Four men behind the recent vandalism of the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Hampi have been arrested by the Ballari police.

Earlier a video emerged on Instagram showing three men pushing carved stone pillars in the ruins of Hampi to the ground, following which one breaks and the trio rejoice on February 2, BM reports.

The video footage went viral on the internet causing huge outrage, both online and offline with Indians from across the nation demanding immediate action against culprits and protection for the world heritage site.

Following the incident, the Archaeological Survey of India had lodged a complaint.

Ballari Superintendent of Police, Arun Ranga Rajan, said, “Out of the four youth secured in this case, one is from Madhya Pradesh and three are from Bihar who has settled in Bengaluru.

Fearing threat, the police have decided not to reveal their identities. One worked for HAL and others include a digital marketer, an engineering student and an ITI graduate still searching for a job.”

Meanwhile a HAL spokesperson, claimed to be unaware of the police’s claim.

According to reports, Police claimed that the lead, in this case, came in the form of a telephone number, suspected to be that of one of the accused.

Only armed with this number, a team searched for Aadhaar records, Facebook IDs, viral videos and Instagram accounts following which they moved on the next important clue was a delivery message on Flipkart.

The police got the address of one of the accused through that and the accused were secured.

At the initial stage the video was suspected to have been happened a year ago but later the investigations suggested the video was a recent one.

“Two men were picked up from Bengaluru and one was followed to Madhya Pradesh and then to Bihar before he was arrested. The fourth one was secured from Hyderabad. Four teams worked on the case and travelled to Madhya Pradesh, Bihar and Bengaluru in their trail. All four are Hindus. They admitted to the act and have requested for protection,” sources said.