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Indian Express
a day ago
- Indian Express
Witness in murder of journalist Gauri Lankesh complains of receiving threat call ahead of court appearance
A panchnama witness involved in the identification of a house in the Belagavi region of Karnataka that was allegedly used to finalise the conspiracy to kill the journalist Gauri Lankesh has complained of receiving a threat ahead of his visit to a special court in Bengaluru to testify in the trial of 17 persons arrested for the September 5, 2017, murder of the journalist. The witness who ran a business in Belagavi had rented the house, which had been used by members of a right-wing crime syndicate involved in the murder of Gauri Lankesh. He was made a panchnama witness when three accused persons in the case – Sharad (Kalaskar), Ganesh (Miskin), and Amit (Baddi) – identified the house. The 55-year-old witness, who was summoned to the witness box last week, complained to the state public prosecutor (SPP) of receiving a threatening phone call ahead of his visit, and based on the complaint, the SPP filed a memo in the special court during the trial on May 28. 'Learned Spl. P.P. has filed a memo along with a requisition of CW (court witness)… Copy of the requisition is served on learned counsel for the accused,' the court noted. 'Despite the threats, the witness stuck to his statement in court,' a prosecution source said. During the trial, the witness said that he had rented a house in Belagavi, and police officials brought two suspects in the murder case – Ganesh (Miskin) and Amit (Baddi) – to the house in August 2018. In September 2018, they brought a third accused identified as Sharad (Kalaskar). A fourth accused was also brought, but the witness claimed to have forgotten his name. In the court, the witness identified Amit (Baddi), Shrikant (Pangarkar), and Sharad (Kalaskar) among the accused persons who were brought to the house where the alleged conspiracy occurred, but said he could not identify the fourth person due to the passage of time. During the trial of the murder case last week, one of the prosecution witnesses turned hostile. The witness had earlier given a detailed statement to a magistrate about his participation in multiple training camps for the use of guns and explosives conducted by a Hindutva syndicate, which is implicated in the murder of Gauri Lankesh. The 37-year-old prosecution witness, who is involved in grassroots politics in the Belagavi region of Karnataka, was declared hostile by the state special public prosecutor on Wednesday after he denied all the statements he had earlier made before a magistrate in September 2018 under Section 164 of the Criminal Procedure Code, 1973. The witness who had identified several persons arrested for the murder of Gauri Lankesh as participants in the training camps also rejected the Test Identification Parade he had participated in at the Bengaluru prison in November 2018 and claimed that he had identified the accused persons under police duress. During a cross-examination in the court after being declared hostile by the prosecution, the witness denied the charge that he was deviating from his earlier statements due to pressure from the accused persons – most of whom were granted bail last year. Gauri Lankesh died after four bullets were fired at her by a man now identified by the SIT as Parashuram Waghmore, a former activist of the right-wing Sri Rama Sene outfit. A forensic analysis of the four empty cartridges and the four bullets fired to kill Lankesh showed that the markings on the bullets and cartridges were the same as markings found on bullets and cartridges seized from the site of the killing of Kannada scholar and researcher M M Kalburgi in the northern Karnataka town of Dharwad on August 30, 2015. Findings from the comparison of ballistic evidence from the Lankesh and Kalburgi cases also revealed that the 7.65 mm country-made gun used in the two murders in Karnataka had also been used in the shooting of the Leftist thinker Govind Pansare, 81, in Maharashtra's Kolhapur on February 16, 2015. The ballistic evidence indicated that one of the two guns used in the Pansare murder was used to kill the rationalist Narendra Dabholkar, 69, in Pune on August 20, 2013. The Karnataka Special Investigation Team (SIT) has named 17 people from right-wing fringe outfits for the conspiracy and murder of Gauri Lankesh. The accused have been charged with murder and involvement in an organised crime activity under the Karnataka Control of Organized Crimes Act, (KCOCA) 2000. 'The members of this organisation targeted persons whom they identified to be inimical to their belief and ideology. The members strictly followed the guidelines and principles mentioned in 'Kshatra Dharma Sadhana', a book published by Sanatan Sanstha,' the SIT said after it filed a 9,235-page chargesheet on November 23, 2018.
The Wire
2 days ago
- Politics
- The Wire
Key Witness in Gauri Lankesh Murder Case Receives Threats, Complains to Special Court
Menu हिंदी తెలుగు اردو Home Politics Economy World Security Law Science Society Culture Editor's Pick Opinion Support independent journalism. Donate Now Law Key Witness in Gauri Lankesh Murder Case Receives Threats, Complains to Special Court The Wire Staff 48 minutes ago The witness who has been threatened was crucial in identifying the accused and the place where the alleged conspiracy was hatched to murder Lankesh. Gauri Lankesh was shot at her home in September 2017. Photo: PTI Real journalism holds power accountable Since 2015, The Wire has done just that. But we can continue only with your support. Contribute now New Delhi: An important witness in the case pertaining to the murder of journalist-activist Gauri Lankesh has complained to the special court about receiving threats from people who told him not to identify the accused. The witness, a resident of Belagavi received the threats over a phone call on May 28 and submitted a written complaint on the same day, reported Deccan Herald. 'The witness received a phone call where he was threatened not to identify the accused. He filed a complaint before the court. Though he was disturbed and upset, he testified before the court on Thursday,' a source told the newspaper. A copy of the complaint and a memo by the special public prosecutor were submitted to the court. The witness who has been threatened was crucial in identifying the accused and the place where the alleged conspiracy was hatched to murder Lankesh. Well-known journalist and editor Lankesh, a household name for readers in Karnataka because of her sharp writing and bold views, was shot dead at her residence in Bengaluru late on September 5, 2017. She was editor of the weekly Lankesh Patrike – a magazine that has been described as an 'anti-establishment' publication – and had come under attack for her views against the communal politics of the Sangh parivar in Karnataka. The chargesheet in her murder case had said that the assassination was an 'organised crime' carried out by people associated with the Sanatan Sanstha, an extremist right-wing Hindutva organisation. Make a contribution to Independent Journalism Related News Petition in Madhya Pradesh HC Over Communal Coverage of Rape Case in Bhopal When the Supreme Court Echoes Populist Sentiments, It Risks Undermining the Constitution's Voice UP Deputy CM Backs Hindu Rashtra Call at Right-Wing Event in Lucknow US Jury Orders NSO Group to Pay $168 Million in WhatsApp Spyware Case Supreme Court Raps MP Govt for Shielding Police in Custodial Death of Pardhi Youth Agra Muslim Man Murder: Cops Shoot, Arrest Two, Person who Linked Event to Pahalgam Attack Also Held Supreme Court Flags ED's 'Pattern of Allegations Without Any Evidence' After 19-Month Freeze, Modi Signals Thaw with Canada Following Carney's Win Trump's Anti-Bribery Freeze Offers Adani Hope, But No Guarantee of Reprieve, Say US Legal Experts View in Desktop Mode About Us Contact Us Support Us © Copyright. All Rights Reserved.
Indian Express
6 days ago
- Politics
- Indian Express
Gauri Lankesh murder: witness makes U turn on association with accused at arms training camps
A prosecution witness in the Gauri Lankesh murder trial who had given detailed statements to a magistrate about his participation in multiple arms training camps conducted by a right-wing Hindutva syndicate implicated in the crime turned hostile on Wednesday. The 37-year-old prosecution witness, who is involved in grassroot politics in Karnataka's Belagavi region, was declared hostile by the state special public prosecutor after he denied all the statements he had made in September 2018 under section 164 of the Code of Criminal Procedure. The witness, who had identified several people arrested for the September 5, 2017, murder of the journalist as participants in the training camps, also rejected the test identification parade he had participated in at the Bengaluru prison in November 2018 and claimed that he had identified the accused persons under police duress, prosecution sources said. During a cross-examination in the court after being declared hostile by the prosecution, the witness denied the charge that he was deviating from his earlier statements due to pressure from the accused–most of whom were granted bail last year. A chargesheet filed by a Special Investigation Team of the Karnataka police, which investigated the shooting of the 55-year-old journalist outside her home in Bengaluru, has statements by several accused people and witnesses regarding training camps where coaching was also provided in the use of arms and explosives. The SIT has arrested 17 people linked to various fringe Hindutva groups for the murder of Gauri Lankesh, which was allegedly coordinated by people formerly associated with the Hindu Janajagruti Samiti, a Sanatan Sanstha affiliate, and who created a crime syndicate to target critics of Hindutva politics. The SIT filed a chargesheet in the case on November 23, 2018. Statements about the training camps recorded in the chargesheet have been given by as many as three people arrested in the case and four witnesses who were part of the camps. The witness who was declared hostile on Wednesday stated before a magistrate in 2018 about being approached by two persons—including Amol Kale, 38, a former HJS convenor and alleged chief coordinator of the right-wing crime syndicate–for participation in the training camps and recruitment of like-minded youths in Belagavi. When summoned to the witness box in the trial, the 37-year-old witness denied knowing Kale and others who were part of the syndicate's activities from 2011 to 2017. He denied receiving instructions to identify critics of Hindutva and being trained in the use of guns and explosives at multiple locations–including at two camps held in Maharashtra's Jalna and near Dharmasthala in Karnataka in 2015. The witness also denied recruiting and taking three people from Belagavi for a training camp in Jalna around January 2015, where a Belagavi man accused in the August 30, 2015, murder of the Kannada scholar Prof M M Kalburgi in Dharwad was also allegedly a participant. The witness had also mentioned the presence of as many as four external trainers at some of the camps who were experts in the use of explosives and subversion tactics. The external trainers were only identified as Bade Mahatmaji, Chote Mahatmaji or Bade Babaji and Bhai Sab and their real identities were not revealed, he stated in 2018. 'The members of this crime syndicate were continuously provided with various kinds of training in the making and usage of weapons and explosives at many places. Local members of the syndicate took up the responsibility of organising these training camps at the different locations,' the SIT stated in its chargesheet. Among those accused in the Gauri Lankesh murder and other cases who allegedly attended the training camps are Amit Degwekar, Virendra Tawade, Sharad Kalaskar, Shrikant Pangarkar, Vasudev Suryavanshi, Ganesh Miskin, Amit Baddi, Bharat Kurne, Sachin Andhure, and Praveen Chatur. Sharad Kalaskar was convicted last year in the murder of the Maharashtra rationalist Narendra Dabholkar in Pune in 2013. He provided details of the training camps he attended to the CBI, which investigated the Dabholkar murder case. The witness who turned hostile this week is the third prosecution witness to turn hostile among the 183 prosecution witnesses presented in court till May 28 in the trial that began on July 4, 2022. Over 400 witnesses have been identified in the case. In August 2023, a prosecution witness from Udupi who was also identified among the people recruited by the right-wing Hindutva syndicate for extremist activities denied attending meetings and a training camp of the group. The prosecution witness had earlier given a statement to a magistrate about going to Pune for arms training at the instance of Praveen Kumar alias Sujit Kumar, an arrested recruiter for the right-wing extremist outfit linked to the murders of Gauri Lankesh and three others. Last year, a prosecution witness linked to the Hindu Janajagruti Samiti who is alleged to have loaned his Splendor motorcycle to an accused person, H L Suresh, to facilitate the recce of the home of the journalist in Bengaluru turned hostile. The witness denied association with the HJS and ownership of the bike that was still registered in his mother's name. Gauri Lankesh was killed after four bullets were fired at her outside her home by a man now identified by the SIT as Parashuram Waghmore, a former activist of the right-wing Sri Rama Sena outfit. A forensic analysis of the four empty cartridges and the four bullets fired to kill Lankesh showed that the markings on the bullets and cartridges were the same as markings found on bullets and cartridges recovered from the site of the killing of Kannada scholar and researcher M M Kalburgi in the northern Karnataka town of Dharwad on August 30, 2015. Findings from the comparison of ballistic evidence from the Lankesh and Kalburgi cases also revealed that the 7.65 mm country-made gun used in the two murders in Karnataka had also been used in the shooting of the Leftist thinker Govind Pansare, 81, in Maharashtra's Kolhapur on February 16, 2015. The ballistic evidence also indicated that one of the two guns used in the Pansare murder was used to kill the rationalist Narendra Dabholkar, 69, in Pune on August 20, 2013. The Karnataka SIT has named 17 people from right-wing Hindutva fringe outfits for the conspiracy and murder of Gauri Lankesh. The accused have been charged for murder and involvement in an organised crime activity under the Karnataka Control of Organised Crime Act (KCOCA) 2000. 'The members of this organisation targeted persons whom they identified to be inimical to their belief and ideology. The members strictly followed the guidelines and principles mentioned in 'Kshatra Dharma Sadhana', a book published by Sanatan Sanstha,' the SIT said after it filed a 9,235-page chargesheet on November 23, 2018.
The Hindu
25-04-2025
- Politics
- The Hindu
‘Gauri Lankesh built movements': interview with author Rollo Romig
Rollo Romig, American journalist, essayist and critic, has been reporting on South India, mostly for The New York Times Magazine from 2013. He also writes for the New Yorker. His first book, I Am on the Hit List: Murder and Myth-making in South India, is an investigation into the life and death of slain editor-activist Gauri Lankesh, a prism through which he captures the rise of what he calls an 'electoral autocracy' in India. Edited excerpts from an interview. In the Introduction, you say you wanted to write a book on South India. Why did you then choose to write about the life and death of Gauri Lankesh? I have been writing about South India for over a decade now, covering the region from various angles. The story of Gauri Lankesh touched on what interests me about South India, its literary scene, language cultures, character of its cities and legacy of communal harmony which was Gauri's signature cause as an activist. I really felt Gauri's story illustrated for me so much of what I love about South India and what is presently under threat. Investigation into who killed Gauri Lankesh also becomes an investigation into who she was in the book. As someone who did not meet Gauri in her life, what was your impression of her? It is odd to write a book about someone whom you have never met. Trying to know her through her friends, I was struck by how people who knew her when she was young could never imagine what she became before she died -- very political, passionate and outspoken. She had metamorphosed so much. Actually, her work as a journalist is not as important as her work in connecting people. The outpouring of grief following her death, showed how she connected with such diverse sets of people. Even those who turned up did not know how many more people she had connected with. Her talent to connect people really matured into movement building talent, the kind of talent that often goes underappreciated. People realise it's important only when a person who has been doing it is gone. The book also dives into another investigation as to why Gauri Lankesh was killed. Tell us more about that. There was a lot of speculation that slain scholar M. M. Kalburgi and her advocacy for the Lingayat cause may have led to them being killed. But investigations have now shown that the primary motive for both their murders are single quotes from single speeches. The killers seem to have decided that they can't allow the person who said this to live. Maybe who Gauri Lankesh was and what she did also came into play. But both the statements of Gauri Lankesh and Kalburgi were taken out of context. They fell victim to the contemporary sound bite culture, where you seize on a single sentence and the viewers always give them the least positive explanation, a sign of extreme polarisation. This also shows how Hindutva has been making a concerted effort to narrow down what is acceptable as Hinduism, trying to introduce an element like blasphemy, completely absent in Hinduism which is essentially a vast constellation of cultures. Gauri Lankesh openly rejected neutrality, that traditional journalism swears by. As a journalist, how do you assess her journalistic work? Gauri really made me think about this question of neutrality and she has influenced me a lot on this question. Her father P. Lankesh, an English professor and a modern Kannada fiction writer, was also a non-traditional journalist. Gauri then was a more traditional neutral journalist. But once she took over the paper after her father's death, she became more and more non-traditional in another way and took it to activism. She rejected many traditional practices, like she did not fact check, never used allegedly, did not seek the version of the other side. In these aspects, I think I will stick to the traditional practices of journalism. But I have come to see neutrality as a defensive false position, essentially favouring the status quo. I have an opinion and I won't pretend that I don't. Should I strive to listen to all viewpoints, yes. But I have realised that some ideas are dangerous and cruel and I am now less hesitant to say so any more. You have included two interludes unrelated to Gauri Lankesh's story in the book, but still interact with the way we perceive her story. Why did you write these two interludes? These are two different stories in the neighbouring states of Kerala and Tamil Nadu, which I had been covering simultaneously. It was an instinctive decision to include these. In ways that I am not able to articulate it yet, having them has made the book more complete, I feel. However complicated your storytelling is, you can't capture the sense of a place and time without telling multiple stories. The interludes are also a tribute to the Indian form of epic storytelling as a mesh of multiple stories. I Am on the Hit List; Rollo Romig, Context, ₹799.
