Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has directed the Home Secretary to take suitable steps to set up a special court for a fast-track trial of Gauri Lankesh and M. M. Kalburgi murder cases.
The families of the two had been making such a demand as the trials in these cases have been dragging on for long.
Kalburgi was killed on August 30, 2015 and editor-activist Gauri Lankesh on September 5, 2017.
Investigations by the Special Investigation Team (SIT) formed after the murder of Gauri Lankesh had filed chargesheets in both cases in 2018-19, alleging a criminal syndicate inspired by the teachings of Goa-based Hindutva organisation Sanatan Sanstha and members associated with its sister organisation Hindu Janjagruti Samiti killed both of them, as they perceived them to be “anti-Hindu”.
Though the chargesheets in these cases were filed in 2018 and 2019, the trials began only in 2022 owing to the pandemic and a host of petitions filed by the counsel of the accused, which the prosecution alleges delayed the process.
Of the 530 witnesses in Gauri Lankesh case, only 97 have been examined and among 143 witnesses in Kalburgi case only six have been examined till date.
The Chief Minister’s note to the Home Secretary said Kalburgi’s wife Umadevi and Gauri Lankesh’s sister Kavita Lankesh had requested the State government to set up a special court for a fast-track trial in these cases.
“We are happy that the process to set up a special court to ensure a fast-rack trial has been initiated. We hope the special court is set up soon and the trial is concluded at the earliest. We have been waiting for six years for justice to be served, while the family of Kalburgi for eight years now,” said Ms. Kavita Lankesh.
A special court is likely be set up in Bengaluru to try both the cases together, as they have common accused and the two murders were part of the same larger conspiracy and most of the accused are lodged in Parappana Agrahara Central Prison Complex in Bengaluru.
Sources said that the Home Secretary would now seek a proposal from the probe agency and put it up for consideration of the State government for approval. After the government approves the proposal, it would be forwarded to the High Court of Karnataka with a panel of judges and the court will constitute the special court and appoint the judge. This process will likely take another month, according to sources.
“The special court which will only hear Kalburgi and Gauri Lankesh cases on a daily basis, will help in completing the trials in a matter of one-and-a-half years,” a senior official said.
