Belagavi: Hemant Nimbalkar, DIG, CID who is probing the high-profile rationalist Dr M M Kalburgi murder case has denied any breakthrough in the case even though an unidentified body found in a forest resembles the alleged killer.
Speaking to sources, Hemant Nimbalkar, DIG, CID said, “Of course the face of unidentified body recovered by the police on October 18 resembles the suspect but nothing can be ascertained until reports from Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) are disclosed.”
The mere matter of resemblance was not enough to conclude he was the killer, but the way his body had been dumped in the forest and the gunshot wounds certainly raised serious questions about the killer’s motives, one of the official told sources.
It is learnt that the person killed has been identified as Hindu but no information has been found about his association with any extremist organisation.
The CID team is investigating whether the body recovered in the forest is that of Sanathan Sanstha member Rudragouda Patil, who is suspected to have shot rationalist Dr Kalburgi to death on August 30 in Dharwad.
“Efforts have been made by the police to publish photos of the unidentified body in newspapers in an attempt to establish the identity. The CID is doing preliminary investigations to find out more about the mystery,” said Nimbalkar.
DIG also visited the spot where the body was recovered and held discussions with Belagavi police officials.
Renowned Kannada writer, research scholar and academician Dr MM Kalburgi was allegedly shot dead by right-wing Hindu activists recently, who was targeted over his alleged remarks on Hindu culture and practices.
Earlier, the deceased body of a person was found in a forest a few days ago by the Belgavi police which resembled one of the sketches released by the police of the suspect in Kalburgi murder case. The police had released sketches of two suspects on September 3 in connection with rationalist MM Kalburgi murder case.
The CID team had questioned the family, relatives, friends and neighbours of Kalburgi and also looked into property disputes besides issues he faced when he was the president of Basavaraj Kattimani Pratishtana. However, the CID is said to have failed to make any headway. No accused has been arrested so far in this high profile case.
