Karthik Raj’s murder: Sister, lover acquitted

MANGALURU: The Mangaluru principal district and sessions court on Monday acquitted three accused in the sensational

Karthik Raj murder case

.

Karthik Raj's sister Kavyashree, Gautam and his brother Gaurav were acquitted in the case due to lack of evidence.

Karthik Raj, 28, son of Umesh a former taluk panchayat member, suffered serious head injuries after he was assaulted by unidentified miscreants near Asaigoli and later he died on October 23, 2017.

According to the charge sheet, the murder was a result of misunderstanding between the siblings over family issue. Karthik’s sister Kavyashree had an illicit relation with a person identified as Gautam Kayya, after she refused to live with her husband Shashwat. This had angered Karthik.

Meanwhile, Gautam, who was constructing a house in Kondana, had fallen short of cash. Kavyashree, who resented her brother’s interference in her private life, allegedly lured him with an offer of Rs 5 lakh to murder Karthik. Gautam took help of his brother Gaurav Kayya and allegedly murdered Karthik when he went out for his regular morning jogging.

The murder had taken a political turn with the infamous comment of

Dakshina Kannada

MP Nalin Kumar Kateel that the BJP would set fire to the district if police failed to nab the assailant of Karthik Raj at a protest rally outside Konaje police station. Incidentally, Kavyashree, the main accused too was present at this very protest meeting.

Judge KS Bilagi heard 33 witnesses and ruled that the prosecution had failed to prove the allegations against the accused. Advocates Venu Kumar, Yuvaraj K Amin and

Udayananda

had argued for the accused.