'No proof of Naxals' role in Gauri Lankesh murder'

BENGALURU: The special investigation team (SIT) probing the murder of journalist Gauri Lankesh has not found any evidence to establish the role of Naxalites in the killing, according to highly placed police sources. SIT personnel have already been recalled from the Maoist-hit areas of Dakshina Kannada, Udupi and Chikkamagaluru districts of Karnataka.

"The teams will return in a day or two. We have interacted with every possible person who was, in one way or another, connected with Naxalite acti vities and Gauri Lankesh. We found that some Naxalites were unhappy with Gauri as she had succeeded in bringing seven of their comrades back to the mainstream. But the disagreement does not appear to have escalated to the level of killing her," a senior police officer said on Monday.