Six Killed in Karnataka Land Dispute, Police Name 12 Accused

Six people , including four members of the same family , were killed in a brutal attack linked to a long-standing land dispute in Karnataka's Vijayapura district. Police have named 12 accused in the case and launched an investigation.

According to an FIR registered at Chadachan police station, the complaint was filed by Chaitannya Kumar Nirale , a farmer and town panchayat member, who alleged that the dispute stemmed from agricultural land purchased by his family in Govindapur village.

The FIR states that tensions resurfaced when the family began clearing and cultivating the land. On Friday afternoon, while family members and labourers were carrying out land-clearing work with an earthmover, a group of armed men allegedly arrived on motorcycles and objected to the activity.

The assailants were reportedly armed with swords, machetes, sickles and knives . They allegedly threatened those present, threw chilli powder into some victims' eyes, and launched a deadly attack.

Among those killed were Dundappa Nirale, Shivaputra Nirale, Chandrakant alias Chandu Nirale, and Revansiddha alias Rahul Nirale , along with two others associated with the family. Several people, including Samarth Nirale, Shabbir Attar, Sandeep Mane and Aravind Katage , sustained injuries.

Police have registered a case under various provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, including murder, attempt to murder, rioting, unlawful assembly and criminal intimidation . Authorities said important leads have emerged and further investigation is underway.

The incident underscores how land disputes remain one of the leading triggers of violent crime in rural India , often escalating from ownership and cultivation disagreements into deadly confrontations.