Police found similarities between the murder cases of other activists

Bengaluru: The Police are finding similarities between the murder cases of other activists Narendra Dabholkar, Govind Pansare MM Kalburgi to Gouri Lankesh’s murder.

Gauri Lankesh (55) was shot dead with a 7.65mm pistol outside her residence in Southwest Bengaluru on Tuesday. As per the reports, similar weapons had been used in the killing of activists and thinkers MM Kalburgi, Narendra Dabholkar and Govind Pansare.

However, forensic analysis is yet to confirm if the weapon used to kill Gauri was used in any other killings.

The sources, however, said they are yet to establish if it was a countrymade pistol. “The assailant could be a contract killer. We have not been able to establish whether the shooter was alone or worked with others.”

The Special Investigation Team (SIT), which began its probe on Thursday, said that “the assailant shot Gauri within a distance of 10 feet”.

Investigators have collected call record details of Gauri’s mobile phone and two landline phones in her office and at home.”Between August 2016 and September 5, Gauri had received or dialled around 650 numbers that were not on her contact list. The team will filter all calls and sort names based on their relationship with her,” police said.