Karnataka: Congress MLA gets life imprisonment for 2016 murder of BJP leader

A Bengaluru court on Friday sentenced Congress MLA Vinay Kulkarni to life imprisonment for the 2016 murder of Bharatiya Janata Party leader Yogeshgouda Goudar, Bar and Bench reported.

Kulkarni and 15 others had been convicted on Wednesday by a special court. He was also fined Rs 30,000 as part of the sentence delivered on Friday. Kulkarni is the MLA from Dharwad.

Goudar was killed in June 2016. The case had been investigated by the Central Bureau of Investigation.

The central agency had filed a chargesheet for murder, criminal conspiracy, public servant disobeying the law to shield a person accused in a matter, destruction of evidence, rioting and illegal possession of weapons, Bar and Bench reported.

Kulkarni had been arrested in November 2020, but was granted bail by the Supreme Court in August 2011.

The top court cancelled his bail in June 2025, observing that there was credible evidence of him having tried to influence witnesses during the trial.

On Wednesday, the special court ruled that Kulkarni and several others accused in the matter had entered into a criminal conspiracy to murder the BJP leader, Bar and Bench reported.

However, Kulkarni was acquitted of charges under the Arms Act.

Kulkarni was the Dharwad MLA between 2013 and 2018, when he lost the polls. He again became the MLA in 2023.
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