K’ t aka BJ P l eader’ s murder: Charge sheet against ex-min

NEW DELHI: The CBI has filed a charge sheet against former minister in the Congress-led Karnataka government Vinay Kulkarni and two others in connection with the 2016 murder of Yogesh Gowda, a BJP zilla panchayat member in Dharwad, officials said Tuesday. Besides Kulkarni, the agency has filed the charge sheet against Chandrashekhar Indi and Shivananand Birdar in a special court in Dharwad, they said. The agency has alleged that the accused had personal enmity and political rivalry with Gowda who rejected their offer to withdraw from the zilla panchayat elections in 2016. "Investigations revealed that the ex-minister allegedly conspired with his close associates and in pursuance thereof, one of his associates agreed to execute the murder. It was alleged that a land deal was entered by the accused and a purported land dispute was portrayed as a motive for the murder.