The Newspapers Association of Karnataka has felicitated Puneeth Kerehalli, a murder accused and a cow vigilante, during a Kannada Rajyotsava event held on Thursday, November 27. According to the association’s social media pages, the annual event is intended to award people who have made significant contributions in various sectors in Karnataka. The felicitation comes despite Puneeth Kerehalli being recently placed under preventive arrest after refusing to give an undertaking that he would abstain from communal, criminal or anti-social activities. 

The pictures from the event show that other than Puneeth, around ten other people too were given awards and it was attended by a host of guests. The dignitaries included Retired Justice of the Supreme Court and ex-Lokayukta N Santosh Hegde, Retired Justice of the Kerala High Court SR Bannurmath, and Ajai Kumar Singh IPS, the Retired Director General of Police for the Government of Karnataka. 

When contacted regarding the platforming of a murder accused, retired justice N Santosh Hegde confirmed that he attended the event but said he was unaware that Puneeth Kerehalli was a vigilante accused of murdering cattle trader Idrees Pasha in 2023. 

He told TNM, “If it is true (that he is accused of murder), then I am very sorry. I should not have done that. Because that is not the correct thing to do. Felicitating someone who is under investigation, I myself have made statements about people who go to jail are welcomed back and that is wrong. If I am accused of the same thing, and it is true then I express regret about that.”

TNM reached out to the organisers of the event for a comment, but they were unavailable; this copy will be updated if a response is received.

Puneeth Kerehalli is a Hindutva activist who runs the Rashtra Rakshana Pade (National Protection Force), an extremist group known for its aggressive “cow protection” campaigns. He is the main accused in the March 2023 murder of cattle transporter Idrees Pasha in Ramanagara. He routinely intercepts cattle transport vehicles and uploads videos of these incidents on social media. 

His group has also campaigned for the boycott of Muslim vendors near temples and opposed the sale of halal meat in Karnataka. 

Kerehalli is believed to be close to the Bharatiya Janata Party, with several images showing him along with top leaders from Karnataka. He maintains that his actions are legal under the Karnataka Prevention of Slaughter and Preservation of Cattle Act, 2020, although vigilante groups frequently target vehicles even when the transport is legal.

According to a police statement, he is already accused in 14 serious cases and is constantly involved in criminal acts. On September 10, 2025, the Basavanagudi Police detained him as a precautionary measure under Section 127 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) to prevent further criminal acts. This section empowers an Executive Magistrate to demand a bond for good behaviour. However, police reports indicate that Kerehalli’s refusal to refrain from anti-social activities led directly to his arrest and judicial remand. The statement noted that “since he refused to give an undertaking, the Special Executive Magistrate has ordered his judicial custody.”

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