Rivalry over internet business led to murder of MD and CEO, says colleague in FIR

The police have arrested Santosh, 26, a resident of Marenhalli, Shabarish alias Felix, 27, from Devarachikkanahalli on Bannerghatta Road, and Vinay Reddy, 23, a resident of Roopena Agrahara, in connection with the crime. They are also interrogating Arun Kumar, owner of G-Net, another broadband internet service provider in Bannerghatta where the deceased once worked.

In his complaint, Shankara Narayan, a colleague of Phanindra, said all of them used to work with GNet. The Indian Express has accessed the FIR in which Narayan alleges business rivalry as the cause behind the murders of Phanindra and Kumar.

“Phanindra and Vinu Kumar resigned from their jobs and came here to start Aironics Media Pvt Ltd. About 8-10 employees of GNet also quit the company and joined Phanindra’s firm. The company was doing good and we were doing good business,” he said in the complaint.

“After opening Aironics, G-Net revenue came down as their business did not do well. Felix worked in the same company and we suspect that GNet owner Arun Kumar sent Felix and his associates to kill the MD and CEO of the company,” he added.

However, a police officer, who is interrogating Felix and his associates, said the accused have not revealed Arun Kumar’s role in the crime. “Felix is claiming that he worked in G-Net and he was sacked by Phanindra over some issues and that he held a grudge against him. He also claimed that he came to murder Phanindra by taking an appointment to seek a job in his company. However, we are verifying his claims,” said the officer.

The police have registered a case under sections 302 (murder), 120b (criminal conspiracy) and 34 (common intention).

Felix, who is an Instagram influencer and rapper with about 16,600 followers, had published a story on the social media platform prior to the murder. He said, “This planet people always flatters and cheaters. So I hurt this planet’s people. I hurt only bad people. I never hurt any good people”.

Felix had also shared a report about the murder of Phanindra and Kumar on Instagram before he was arrested near Kunigal in the state’s Tumakuru district.

While Aironics, under the brand name Air-On, provides business internet, networking solutions, cyber security, internet of things and cloud services, G-Net provides residential broadband, business broadband and corporate leased lines.

A police officer said the business of GNet had drastically come down after Phanindra and his colleagues had started Air-On, which was registered in November 2022.

The officer said, “While there are big players like Act, Jio and Airtel, there are smaller companies trying to capture smaller markers and offer high-speed internet at attractive prices.”