Bengaluru: The Special Court for Elected Representatives sentenced Congress MLA and former Karnataka minister Vinay Kulkarni and 16 others to life imprisonment for the murder of BJP leader Yogeshgouda Goudar in 2016.
Kulkarni (56) and the others were taken into custody after Special Judge Santosh Gajanan Bhat pronounced them guilty on April 15.
The court found the Dharwad Rural MLA and his co-accused guilty of murder (Section 302) and criminal conspiracy (Section 120B) under the Indian Penal Code. The case was investigated by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).
On Friday, the court delivered the quantum of punishment, as reported by The Times of India.
Special public prosecutors Shivananda Perla and S Hemahad prayed for “life imprisonment without remission” (till death), emphasizing that the involvement of a sitting legislator warranted a sentence that sent a strong message to society.
Kulkarni’s legal team pleaded for leniency, citing his family responsibilities. The court, however, upheld the severity of the crime.
Goudar, a BJP Zilla Panchayat member, was brutally hacked to death at his gym in Dharwad on June 15, 2016.
While the local police initially handled the investigation, the case was transferred to the CBI in 2019 after political pressure and allegations that Kulkarni, then a district in-charge minister, orchestrated the killing to eliminate a rising political rival.
Kulkarni faces immediate disqualification from the Karnataka Legislative Assembly under the Representation of the People Act, which mandates removal of any elected representative sentenced to imprisonment of two years or more.
