The murder is currently being probed by an SIT constituted by the Karnataka Police.
The Supreme Court on Monday expressed discontent over Karnataka Police sitting on the murder investigation of rationalist scholar MM Kalburgi. It threatened to put the case under the scrutiny of the Bombay High Court, which is already monitoring the CBI probe into the murder of writer-scholar Narendra Dabholkar.
Kalburgi's wife had approached the court seeking the constitution of a special investigation team (SIT) for a fresh probe into her husband's death. The 77-year old former Vice-Chancellor of Hampi University was shot dead at his residence in Dharwad, Karnataka, on August 30, 2015.
The murder is currently being probed by an SIT constituted by the Karnataka Police. The matter came up for hearing before the bench of Justices RF Nariman and Navin Sinha, which was unsatisfied with the tardy probe in the case so far.
The bench told the Karnataka government, "You people are doing nothing in this case." Indicating that it was prepared to send the case to Bombay High Court for monitoring, the bench said, "We are giving you (Karnataka) two weeks to respond. We are prepared to transfer the case to Bombay HC."
A new twist in the case took place when the National Investigating Agency (NIA) probing into a blast in Goa found one of the accused Sarang Akolkar to be involved with the murder of Kalburgi, Dabholkar, and another scholar Govindrao Pansare. The role of fundamental Hindu groups was suspected behind all three murders.
Kalburgi's wife, in her petition, alleged that there was common link between the murder of her husband and that of Dabholkar and Pansare, who were killed in August 2013 and February 2015, respectively. Dabholkar was shot dead in Pune, while Pansare was killed near Kolhapur in Maharashtra.
She alleged that one of the weapons used in the murder of Pansare was used to kill Kalburgi and therefore a central investigating agency was required to coordinate the investigation in the two states. The murder of Pansare is being looked into by the SIT of Maharashtra Police while Dabholkar case is the only one being investigated by the premier investigation agency CBI.
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
 "Dabholkar, Pansare, and Kalburgi")
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
)
)
)
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}