Bengaluru: Indian Air Force (IAF) officer Wing Commander Shiladitya Bose has now landed on a bit of a sticky wicket for suppressing facts in an Instagram video he posted on Monday from Bengaluru in Karnataka.
In the video, a bleeding Bose, had claimed that he was brutally assaulted by a motorcyclist on the way to the Kempegowda International Airport on Monday morning. He claimed that the Kannada speaking youth was egged on by locals, who did nothing to stop the youth from attacking him, first with the motorbike key and then with a stone.
After Bose’s post went viral, the Bengaluru Police went hyperactive and collected CCTV footage from the area. Based on that, they arrested the biker, identified as Vijay Kumar and pressed charges against him. At the same time, the footage shows Bose assaulting Kumar. He punches the biker to the ground and then kicks him.
Instead of just standing around, the crowd that has gathered are seen trying to separate the two and diffuse the tension.
Later in the evening, Kumar lodged a counter FIR against Bose. To make matters worse, Karnataka chief minister Siddaramaiah and state home minister G Parameshwara hit out at the fighter pilot for raking up the Kannada vs non-Kannada issue when nothing of this sort took place. They have asked authorities to take necessary action against Bose for this.
Bengaluru Police chief B Dayananda has also said that this was a case of road rage and had nothing to do with the language issue. He cautioned against such posts on social media without lodging a complaint with the police.
The IAF, meanwhile, has said that it will provide all assistance in the ongoing investigation.