Special court will deal with Gauri Lankesh, MM Kalburgi murder cases: CM Siddaramaiah
Bengaluru: Chief Minister of Karnataka Siddaramaiah has order the setting up of a special court to quicken the hearings in the cases of murder of rationalist MM Kalburgi and journalist Gauri Lankesh, who were both known for holding strong views and being vocal against communalism and religious fundamentalism.
The investigations of the cases have revealed that the murders had been ideologically motivated and linked to a wider conspiracy that targeted left-weaning activists.
Kalburgi had been shot dead outside his house in Dharwad in August 2015. The legal proceedings had been consistently delayed although the charge sheet was submitted in 2018 and family inquiries had been completed. Following persistent requests by Umadevi M, the CM, in an order dated December 2, directed the initiation of necessary action to form a special court exclusively for the Kalburgi murder case.
Gauri Lankesh, who was a journalist, was assassinated in a similar manner in Bengaluru on September 5, 2017. The police arrested 18 persons for involvement in the case, and also presented a comprehensive charge sheet with as many as 1,200 pieces of evidence in the murder case.
The Special Investigation Team (SIT) had said in the charge sheet filed in 2019 that 'Sanatan Sanstha', the Hindu extremist organization, was responsible for the murder of Gauri Lankesh, adding that the murder was linked to the killing of other activists and rationalists like Kalburgi, Narendra Dabholkar and Govind Pansare. The police officers had concluded that a common group, driven by ideological motives, was behind the murders.
The trial began in July 2022 but was hampered by the court backlog. In response to the Gauri Lankesh's sister Kavita Lankesh's plea, Siddaramaiah ordered the formation of the special court with a full-time judge.
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Kalaburagi: 22-yr-old driver killed on spot as pickup vehicle crashes into bridge on NH in Afzalpur
Kalaburagi: The driver of a pickup truck transporting fish was killed on the spot as the vehicle rammed into a bridge on the National Highway bypass in Balurgi village of Afzalpur taluk early Friday morning.
The deceased has been identified as Anil Dasharatha Bhovi (22), a native of Bandarwada village in Afzalpur taluk. He was reportedly driving from Jewargi to Solapur, when he lost control of the vehicle and crashed into a bridge on the bypass in Balurgi. Anil Said to have died on the spot due to the intensity of the crash.
Afzalpur Police have said that the body of the driver has been sent to the Afzalpur Government Hospital and will be handed over to the family after completion of the postmortem examination.
A case has been registered in this regard at the Afzalpur Police Station and investigation is underway.
