Bengaluru: A special court in Karnataka’s capital Bengaluru has sentenced Congress MLA Vinay Kulkarni to life imprisonment in the murder case of Bharatiya Janata Party leader Yogesh Gowda. The court has also given life imprisonment to 16 other people found guilty in this case. Judge Santosh Gajanan Bhat of the special court that hears cases related to MPs and MLAs had on Wednesday convicted Kulkarni and other accused of criminal conspiracy and murder under various sections of the Indian Penal Code. After this, the sentence was pronounced on Friday.
CBI had asked for strict punishment
The CBI, which is investigating this case, had on April 16 demanded from the court life imprisonment without any remission for Kulkarni. At the same time, the defense lawyer had appealed for minimum punishment citing Kulkarni’s social services, political background and family responsibilities. BJP leader Yogesh Gowda, a former member of Dharwad District Panchayat, was murdered in Dharwad on 15 June 2016. Vinay Kulkarni was the minister at that time. According to the information, hired attackers attacked Gowda in a gym located in Saptapur, Dharwad and murdered him brutally.
Big revelation in CBI investigation
In 2019, on the demand of Gowda’s family and others, the then BJP government had handed over the case to the CBI. The CBI filed a supplementary chargesheet in 2020, naming Vinay Kulkarni as the mastermind of the murder. According to the investigating agency, Kulkarni considered Yogesh Gowda as his political rival and hired attackers were used to eliminate him. CBI lawyer Hema said that the agency had filed a charge sheet against 21 people in this case. After hearing, the court found 17 accused guilty on charges of murder, conspiracy, destroying evidence and saving criminals.
‘Will remain in jail till his last breath’
CBI lawyer Hema said, ‘The guilty person will remain in jail till his last breath.’ He said that the court has sentenced 16 convicts to ‘double life imprisonment’ in both murder and conspiracy cases. Another accused in this case, who was a police officer, has been sentenced to 7 years of rigorous imprisonment after pleading guilty to destroying evidence and saving criminals. The court has imposed a total fine of around Rs 12.50 lakh in this case. Besides, an order has been given to pay compensation of Rs 16 lakh to the victim’s children and his brother Gurunath Gowda.
SK Sharma is a content writer who writes on news, entertainment, and lifestyle topics. She has over four years of experience and is known for conveying information in simple and clear language.
