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 Kalsakar 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 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 Maharashatra and M.M. Kalburgi and Gauri Lankesh in Karnataka. He, along with Degwekar, who is a Sanatan Sanstha activist and a resident of the ashram in Ponda (Goa), Manohar Edave from Vijaypura and Sujeet Kumar alias Praveen from Mangaluru, was arrested in May by the Uparpet police for allegedly conspiring to kill rationalist and writer K.S. Bhagwan from Mysuru.
The four were later arrested by the SIT for their alleged role in the Gauri murder case. Bangera, a government employee from Kodagu, had allegedly trained Andure, Gauri’s alleged shooter Parshuram Waghmare, and several other recruits in the use of guns and target shooting at a farmhouse of co-accused Bharat Kurne in Khanapur in Belagavi. Bangera was arrested by the SIT on July 23.
Degwekar is of interest in all the four cases. He was a resident of the Sanatan Sanstha ashram in Goa and is said to have been the financier and the alleged “crucial” link between the Sanstha and the fringe Right groups, which were brought together by Kale, Dada alias Nihal, who is on the run, and a former member of the Sanstha, who passed away in April this year.
