Jagalur: Former Mayor Purandaradasa Kuloor Goes Gold Hunting, Arrested
 
Pic: Spoorthi Ullal
Daijiworld Media Network – Mangalore/ Davanagere (PS)

Jagalur, Oct 14: In a sudden development, former mayor of Mangalore City Corporation Purandaradasa Kuloor was arrested in Jagalur of Davanagere district here on Friday October 14 on charges of trying to excavate gold illegally.

Jabir, Mohammed, Abdul Rehman, Siddique, Ponappa of Kodagu, Rajesh Shetty, Padmanabha Bhat, of Mangalore, Basavaraj, Mahantesh of Bellary and Rangappa of Jagalur were also arrested.

According to fresh reports coming in, the mastermind was Rangappa who called the others from various places with the lure of finding gold.

The team had arrived in Tarehalli village, Chowdamma temple located in Ranga Durga Reserve forest area, believing that there was a gold mine in the area. There were 15 members in all, however, four managed to escape from police.
 
Bilichodu police on information given by the villagers rushed to the spot at around 3 am in the morning and found them digging at the spot. Police took all of them into custody, including the former mayor of Mangalore.

Two cars worth Rs 5 lac each and two motorbikes were seized by the police. They were charged with damaging government property, destroying crops and digging a hole at the spot.
 
Sources in Jagalur told Daijiworld that now they have been presented before the judge at his residence.

Purandaradasa Kuloor was elected the mayor of Mangalore in June 2004. Prior to that he had been in the police, which he left to joint politics. He was also a national-level sportsman.