Underworld Don Bannanje Raja Brought to Udupi on Parole for Father’s Funeral

Mangalore Today News Network

Udupi, May 4, 2025: Underworld don Bannanje Raja, who is currently lodged in Belagavi Jail, was brought to Udupi on Sunday under parole granted by the High Court to attend his father’s funeral rites.

Raja’s father, M. Sundar (88), passed away on April 27. Following his demise, Raja filed a plea in the High Court seeking emergency parole to participate in the funeral and associated religious rituals. The court granted his request, imposing specific conditions and allowed parole from May 3 to May 14.

In compliance with the court’s orders, police escorted Raja under tight security to his residence in Sasithota, Malpe, where he performed the last rites. Later, the cremation was held at Malpe Hindu crematorium amidst heavy police security.

Bannanje Raja, a notorious underworld figure, was arrested in February 2015 in Morocco, South Africa, and subsequently extradited to Bengaluru. He has been convicted in multiple cases, including the Karwar murder case and the Udupi Irodi Jewelers’ shootout, and is serving life imprisonment in Belagavi Jail for 23 criminal cases over the past decade.