CBI wants Gauri Lankesh murder accused custody

Bengaluru: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has sought the permission from the designated court in Pune for a production warrant of three accused, who have been arrested in the Gauri Lankesh murder case and are currently lodged in judicial custody at the Bengaluru Central Prison.

The CBI is investigating the murder case of rationalist Narendra Dabholkar, who was shot dead by a bike-borne assailant, when he was out on a morning walk on August 20, 2013 in Pune.

According to sources, the CBI has applied for the custody of Amol Kale alias Bhaisahab, Rajesh Bangera alias ‘Tamatar’ and Amit Degwekar alias Pradeep. Sachin Andure and Sharad Kalaskar were arrested from Maharashtra in Dabholkar and arms haul case. During interrogation, Andure reportedly identified Bangera as the gun supplier and his arms trainer.

Meanwhile, the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), which is probing the murder case of Kalburgi, has also applied in the Dharwad court for the production warrants of Amol Kale, Rajesh Bangera, Ganesh Miskin, Amit Degwekar and Sujeet Kumar alias Praveen alias Manjunath for interrogation in their case. Kalburgi was shot dead at the entrance of his house in Dharwad on August 30, 2015. Miskin is said to have driven the motorcycle to ferry Kalburgi’s alleged shooter – Sujeet, on the fateful day.

Kale is a resident of Pune. A former member of the Hindu Janjagruti Samiti (HJS), he is said to have played a central role in the four murder cases of Dabholkar and Govind Pansare in Maharashtra and M.M. Kalburgi and Gauri Lankesh in Karnataka.