BENGALURU: A group of writers and activists marched to the Chief Minister Siddaramaiah’s official residence on Kumar Krupa Road from Maurya Circle on Tuesday to express their displeasure and anger over the Special Investigation Team’s (SIT) ‘inability’ to solve the murder case of senior journalist and activist Gauri Lankesh.
The demonstrators gathered under the banner of Forum Against the Assassination of Gauri Lankesh and expressed concern over the delay in the cracking the case and arresting the accused, even though three months have passed since the incidents. Gauri was shot dead outside her residence in Rajarajeshwari Nagar on September 5.
Protestors detained
Protestors detained
When the protesters tried to enter the Chief Minister’s residence to press for their demands, they were detained by police.
Noted litterateur Chandrashekar Patil (ChamPa) lashed out at the government for bringing the culprits to book even after three months.
He said though the government had claimed it knew Gauri’s killers, it hasn’t identified or exposed them. “If the government knows who killed Gauri, what is stopping it to reveal their names and background. How long the SIT would take to solve the case,” he questioned.
It may be recalled that Home Minister Ramalinga Reddy had on many occasions claimed that SIT had cracked the case and identified the killers, but neither Mr Reddy nor SIT revealed further information.
No let up in SIT probe: Officer
A senior police officer, who is part of the SIT, said that the team had spent sleepless nights in an attempt to crack the case at the earliest. The team has been questioning every suspect and except the professional angle (related to her profession), all other angles were still being looked into.
“We have questioned a number of gun dealers to know whom all they had supplied the guns. Our investigation is still going on with the same spirit,” the officer said, adding, the team believed the culprits would be caught soon.
