With the Supreme Court recently directing a court in Bengaluru to conduct the trial in the 2017 murder of journalist Gauri Lankesh in an expeditious manner, the Special Public Prosecutor (SPP) will seek more frequent hearings of the case when the trial resumes next week.
A Special Investigation Team (SIT) of the Karnataka Police will move the trial court for more frequent hearings in the Gauri Lankesh murder case through the SPP when the trial resumes on September 9, police sources in Karnataka said. Thursday marks seven years since the murder of Lankesh, who was an outspoken critic of Hindutva. The trial of 17 people connected to right-wing Hindutva groups, who were arrested for the September 5, 2017, murder of Lankesh, 55, at her home in Bengaluru, began in July 2022.
Currently, the trial is held for one week every month. However, according to sources, the prosecution intends to request that the trial be held for at least two weeks each month to comply with the Supreme Court’s order on August 20 for a speedy trial.
While the SIT investigating the case requested establishing a special court for daily trial proceedings in December 2023, the request is still pending with the Karnataka High Court.
This story was originally published in indianexpress.com. Read the full story here.
