Human trafficker 'Santro' Ravi was arrested by police from Vadodara in Gujarat, on Friday, 13 January. He was absconding for over 11 days.
There are 21 pending cases against Ravi in Karnataka and the hunt for him was in full swing for the past few days.
There are two recent cases which had the Karnataka police looking for him:
1. The Wife who Alleged Rape: A Dalit lady alleged that on the pretext of offering her a job, Ravi sedated her, raped her and coerced her to get married to him. He allegedly took objectionable videos and photographs of her and blackmailed her. Ravi was charged under various sections of the SC/ST (prevention of atrocities) Act.
2. The Counter False Case: Praveen, inspector of the Cottonpete Police Station had allegedly colluded with Ravi to file a false case against the woman. On 22 November, the woman, her sister, and another person were accused of allegedly receiving Rs 5 lakh from a man and then assaulting and robbing him in Bengaluru. The women were in judicial custody for about 20 days before receiving bail. Following an inquiry by Director General and Inspector General of Police (DG&IGP), the officer was suspended.
Lookout for ‘Santro’: A lookout circular was issued earlier this week against 'Santro' Ravi, to prevent his escape from the country. Mysuru Police had formed 11 special teams that searched for Ravi in Karnataka, Kerala and Andhra Pradesh, especially in Chamrajanagara, Mysuru rural, Mandya, Ramanagaram, Bengaluru rural, and city limits. His bank accounts were frozen and there was continuous surveillance at his home in Rajarajeshwari Nagar.
Who is ‘Santro’ Ravi? Hailing from Karnataka’s Mandya district, 'Santro' Ravi, whose actual name is K S Manjunath Ravi, was the son of a former official in the state excise department. He has been involved in trafficking since 1995, according to the police. Several cases were registered against him from 2010 to 2014 for running a prostitution racket.
What is in a Name? He gained the moniker 'Santro' as he was accused of using a Hyundai Santro car to kidnap women who were then forced into flesh trade.
He allegedly had code names for women of various nationalities, modelled on different kinds of vehicles.
“He would call women from Kazakhstan Mercedes Benz as they were tall and slender. Those from Malaysia and Singapore were called Audis. He had separate terms like Jaguars and BMW for those he bought in Bangladesh and the Northeast,” revealed SK Umesh, retired superintendent of police to News18.
The Expose Spree: An expose by former Karnataka chief minister HD Kumaraswamy brought 'Santro' Ravi to the limelight. He released an audio recording, purportedly of a conversation between a police officer and Ravi, where the latter is heard saying, “Even the chief minister calls me 'Sir'. You are just a deputy superintendent. The word 'Sir' is what should come out of your mouth while addressing me.”
High-end connections: After the allegations surfaced, several photos of him with ministers of Karnataka government, including Primary Education Minister BC Nagesh, Home Minister Araga Jnanendra, and Health Minister K Sudhakar, went viral on social media.
Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai denied all links with Ravi and alleged that the audio clips and images could have been doctored. He assured that a thorough inquiry will be conducted. “The truth must come out,” he said.
Alleged BJP Affiliation: A few days back a complaint was filed against Ravi alleging money transfer fraud. Ravi had responded by bragging about his connections with politicians and claimed he had the power to get the officers transferred, alleged the former chief minister.
“I have worked as a BJP worker for three-four years. I have associations with MLAs and ministers of our party. So I have transferred many officers,” said Kumaraswamy, quoting 'Santro' Ravi from the alleged letter.
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