Four suspected BJP workers arrested for cattle smuggling in Dakshina Kannada

• Four people, including alleged BJP workers, have been arrested in Karnataka's Dakshina Kannada district for illegal cattle smuggling

• The arrests were made by the police based on credible information, and the accused were found transporting six cows and two male calves

• The seized vehicles included two pickup trucks worth Rs 2.5 million and a Tata Ace mini truck worth Rs 2 million

Four people have been arrested in Karnataka's Dakshina Kannada district for illegal cattle smuggling. The arrests of Chenna Keshav from Hassan's Arkalgud, Pushparaj and Pramod Salian from Dakshina Kannada's Belthangady and Sandeep from Hassan's Holenarasipur are believed to be local Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) workers, according to multiple media reports.

The Dakshina Kannada police did not verify with News9 the BJP affiliation of the four accused.

According to police, Dharmasthala sub-inspector Anil Kumar D and other personnel arrested the four on July 12 based on credible information.

The police found that the four were transporting cattle when they checked the vehicles at the Ram temple in Dharmasthala's Kanyadi. The police found that the accused were transporting six cows and two male calves.

They estimated the price of the cattle at around Rs 65,000. Two pickup trucks worth Rs 2.5 million and a Tata Ace mini truck worth Rs 2 million were also seized from the accused, police said.

When questioned, one of the accused told the police that they bought cattle from Indabettu and Navoor to sell in Hassan. They were booked under Sections 8, 9, and 11 of the Karnataka Prevention of Slaughter and Preservation of Livestock Act, Section 11 D of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, and Sections 66 and 192 A of the Indian Motor Vehicles Act.

"The accused have been sent to judicial custody," a police official from the investigation section said in a report.