Major Security Breach: ISIS Recruiter and Serial Killer Caught Using Phones in Bengaluru Jail

Karnataka Home Minister G Parameshwara has issued a stern warning to jail officials following significant security breaches at Bengaluru Central Jail. Recently surfaced videos revealed notorious inmates—an ISIS recruiter and a serial rapist-killer—freely using mobile phones and watching television inside the facility. The minister declared he would "not tolerate this nonsense" and has demanded a comprehensive report from Additional Director General of Police (ADGP) B Dayananda.

"Enough is enough. This type of incident should not occur," stated the minister firmly. "While staff shortages are cited, existing personnel must perform their duties properly. That is not an acceptable excuse. If inmates can access televisions and mobile phones, what purpose does the jail serve? We have already approved CCTVs and jammers, which have been implemented in several locations."

Dayananda was appointed as prisons head on July 31, following the retirement of Director General of Police (Prisons) Malini Krishnamoorthy. He had previously been suspended from his position as Bengaluru Police Commissioner after a stampede claimed 14 lives during a Royal Challengers Bengaluru victory celebration on July 4.

"Though he was on leave yesterday, I have spoken with him," Parameshwara added. "I've emphasized that these incidents are occurring repeatedly, and immediate action must be taken against those responsible, with a detailed report to follow."

One disturbing video showed Zuhaib Hameed Shakeel Manna, an ISIS recruiter, scrolling through a mobile phone inside prison walls. A radio or television could be heard in the background as Manna conversed with someone while enjoying tea. According to the National Investigation Agency (NIA), Manna had raised funds with conspirators, radicalized Muslim youth, and illegally transported them to Syria via Turkey to join ISIS.

Another concerning video featured Umesh Reddy, implicated in 18 rape and murder cases, using two Android phones and a keypad mobile. A television set was visible in his barracks. In 2022, Reddy's death sentence was reduced to 30 years imprisonment by the Supreme Court after he sought clemency claiming mental illness, though he was subsequently declared medically sound.

Images of a third inmate, Tarun Raju, showed him using a phone and cooking inside the jail. Raju was arrested in the Ranya Rao gold smuggling case while attempting to escape to Geneva and was later identified as the mastermind behind a smuggling network that allegedly supplied gold in Dubai to an IPS officer's daughter.

Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has assured appropriate action will be taken, and the Prisons Department has initiated an investigation into these videos.

Parameshwara noted that similar incidents have occurred previously, resulting in suspensions of several officials across the state, including at the central jail, following reports of preferential treatment given to inmates. "Such things should not happen. While staff shortages are sometimes cited, that's not an acceptable excuse. If this justification is used to provide mobile phones and televisions to inmates, then the facility can no longer be considered a jail," he concluded.