A self-proclaimed social activist was arrested on Monday for allegedly threatening owners of recreational clubs and extorting money from them, claiming affiliation with the City Police Commissioner and senior officials of the CCB.
Based on a complaint filed by Ramesh Hanumanthappa, owner of a recreational club in Adugodi, the police arrested Ashok Kumar Adiga.
In his complaint, Mr. Hanumanthappa said that the accused held a meeting of owners of recreational club owners last month and threatened them that if they wanted to run gambling, they would have to make him the owner of the clubs through an agreement.
Adiga claimed that neither the CCB nor the jurisdictional police would dare to raid the clubs and demanded ₹50,000 towards protection money every month.
When a few club owners, including Mr. Hanumanthappa, walked out of the meeting, the accused threatened them with a gun and snatched ₹50,000 from them.
He also threatened that he would order the police to raid their clubs if they did not pay him.
One of the club owners recorded a phone conversation between him and Adiga, and put it on social media, which went viral .
