One More Arrest In Gauri Lankesh Murder Case Takes Total To 10
BENGALURU: The three arrests from Karnataka this week in the murder case of journalist Gauri Lankesh has brought the total number of arrested men to 10. While two people were arrested from Hubballi, another was arrested from Madikeri. Gauri Lankesh, 55, a vocal critic of hardline right-wing ideology, was shot dead outside her Bengaluru home in September last year.
The two men arrested from Hubballi in south Karnataka, Amith Baddi a goldsmith and Ganesh Miskin who manufactures incense sticks, are in police custody till August 6 - charged with murder and under the arms act. Fifty-year-old Rajesh D Bangera was arrested from Madikeri, the police said on Tuesday. He too has been sent to police custody till August 6.
There were protests in Hubbali by right-wing activists after the two men from the town were arrested by the special investigation team or SIT for their alleged involvement in the murder.
The two have the support of right-wing activists who say the men - and the others arrested - are innocent. The protestors handed over a memorandum to the tahsildar.
"We are giving this memorandum to say that we condemn the arrest of these Hindu youth and demand their immediate release. Already so many Hindus have been arrested in the Gauri Lankesh case. And now, without giving any reason, the SIT have arrested Anil and Ganesh on Saturday night even though these young men have no involvement in the case. They are the sole bread-winners for their families," one of them said.
Amith's mother, Jayashree, said, "They didn't tell us anything. They just took him away." Amith's wife tearfully added, "My small child keeps asking where papa is."
The support from Hindu groups and the depiction of the arrested men as innocent youth makes the affiliation between the arrested men and such groups seem more likely.
And makes it even clearer which way the investigation is heading.
The statement by the first man arrested in the case in February - Naveen Kumar - talks of his involvement with Hindu groups like the Sri Rama Sene headed by Pramod Muthalik notorious for being accused in the Mangaluru pub attack case - though he was later acquitted.
The statement also indicates how Gauri Lankesh was said to have made anti-Hindu statements and was a threat to the religion.
Four other men arrested in the case were being investigated for a plot to kill the Mysuru-based rationalist, K Bhagwan - with possible links to Gauri Lankesh's killing being made later.
courtesy : ndtv.com
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Tumkur: 24-year-old rider killed in car-bike head-on collision in Tiptur
Tiptur: A 24-year-old rider was killed on the spot in a head-on collision between his motorbike and a car near Bidiregudi of Kasaba hobli in the taluk.
The deceased rider, Vijay Kumar, was a resident of BL Koppalu Basaveshwara Nagara in Kasaba hobli, Arsikere taluk.
He was reportedly returning home after work at a welding factory near TM Manjunath Nagar Gate, Tiptur, when a car coming from the opposite direction collided with his bike near Bidiregudi. Vijay Kumar is said to have died at the spot due to the impact of the collision.
Locals have blamed the lack of signboards and other precautionary measures amid the construction of a four-lane national highway in the area, mainly between Bidiregudi and Konehalli. They have said that the carelessness of the National Highway Authorities of India (NHAI) has led to frequent accidents in the region.
“A meeting of officers from various government departments, including the police, was held recently under the chairmanship of the local legislator, but several NHAI officials were reportedly absent. Despite the meeting, officials appear careless in implementing safety measures, leading to a rise in accidents,” the locals said, demanding immediate action from the concerned authorities.
