Muslim techie washed away in Cauvery while taking selfie; Hindu friend sacrifices his life in rescue bid

Bengaluru, Jul 16: In yet another selfie-related tragedy, two software engineers from Bengaluru were washed away in Cauvery River while clicking selfies with friends at Mekedatu in Ramanagara district yesterday. The search operation is on.

The victims have been identified as Sameer Rahman (29), and Bhavani Shankar (29), residents of Bannerghatta Road in Bengaluru and natives of Bidar.

The incident happened between 10.30 and 11.30 am at Sangam, Mekedatu where the four friends, Sameer Rahman, Bhavani Shankar, Amit and Srikanth visited on two bikes. They were roommates.

Sameer was trying to take a selfie, when he slipped and fell into the water. Bhavani Shankar also leaped in to save his friend. Both remained untraced so far.

Soon after the tragedy, Amit and Srikanth sought help from locals who informed the police. The police alerted Fire and Emergency Services who rushed to the spot and started the search operation.

As the Krishnarajasagar (KRS) dam's 12 gates are open, the water level has risen to 60-70 feet more than the usual, a senior police officer said.

Sunday’s search operation was called off in the night and resumed on Monday morning. The search team are checking rock crevices underwater with the help of locals. They suspect the bodies could have gotten trapped.

The National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) has also been called for an elaborate search operation.

Jurisdictional Sathanur police have informed the victims' families of the accident, and are assisting the search team to retrieve the bodies.