Udupi: Unidentified persons set fire to a fancy shop on the Sasthan Kodi Road here, late night on Thursday, August 27.
According to the police, miscreants poured petrol on the shutters of Mandara Fancy and Gift Center owned by Prathap Kundar, a resident of Yakshimata near Sasthan.
The incident came to light in the morning around 6 am, when locals noticed it and alerted the shop owner and the police. A refrigerator, fancy items, milk crates and stationery were destroyed in the fire. The shop owner is said to have suffered loss of over Rs 5 lakh.
Kota Police Station PSI Kabbalraj and his team visited the spot. Locals suspect that the shop was torched by miscreants to settle scores between two different communities.
A matchbox and a petrol can was found in front of the shop. They have also began investigating the footage from the Closed Circuit Television Cameras (CCTV) installed at the nearby Co-operative Society.
A case has been registered in the Kota Police Station.
