A Bengaluru court on Friday sentenced Congress MLA Vinay Kulkarni and 15 others to life imprisonment in connection with the murder case of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Yogesh Gowda.
On Wednesday, the Special People’s Court in Bengaluru convicted Vinay Kulkarni along with 15 others in the 2016 BJP leader’s murder case under sections 302 (murder) and 120B (conspiracy) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), the Bar and Bench said.
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According to the report, Vinay Kulkarni and Chandrasekhar Indi have been acquitted of charges under the Arms Act (Firearms Act). Two of the accused Vasudev Rama Nilekani and Somashekhar Nyamagowda (accused no. 20 and 21) were acquitted on the basis of doubt.
According to news agency PTI, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) had applied for Kulkarni’s life sentence without parole on April 16.
However, the MLA’s counsel pleaded for a minimum sentence citing his welfare services, political background and responsibility towards his children and other family members.
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Penalty
Apart from life imprisonment, the court also ordered all 16 accused to pay a fine of Rs ₹30,000 each.
According to the bar association, the court also handed down the following penalties for other crimes:
1. For the offense under Section 143 (unlawful assembly) IPC accused Nos. 2-14 and 18 are sentenced to simple imprisonment for a term of 6 months and fine ₹2000 each.
2. Accused Nos. 2-14 and 18 are sentenced to imprisonment for a term of 1 year with a fine for the offense under § 147 (disturbing) ₹2000 each.
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3. Accused Nos. 2-14 and 18 were sentenced to rigorous imprisonment for a term of 1 year with a fine for the offense under Section 148 (riot armed with a deadly weapon) ₹2000 each.
4. Accused Nos. 2 to 16, 18 and 19 were sentenced to rigorous imprisonment for a term of 7 years with a fine for the offense under Section 201 (tampering with evidence) ₹30,000.
5. For the offense under Section 218 (public employee falsifying records for the purpose of protecting the accused), accused No. 19 was sentenced to 3 years imprisonment with ₹A fine of 20,000
Of the fines that the convicts have to pay, the amount of ₹16 lakh is to be paid to Yogesh Gowda’s children as compensation while the remaining amounts will forfeit to the state, the court said according to the Bar and Bench.
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What is the BJP leader’s murder case?
The case relates to the killing of Goudar, a BJP zilla panchayat member, in Dharwad on June 15, 2016. Kulkarni was a minister at the time, PTI reported.
Hired assailants attacked and hacked Goudar to death at his gym in Saptapur, Dharwad.
Following the demands of Goudar’s family and others, the then BJP government handed over the case to the CBI in 2019.
The CBI filed a supplementary chargesheet in 2020, naming Kulkarni as the “main conspirator”. It was alleged that he perceived Goudar as a rising political rival in Dharwad and hired hitmen to eliminate him.
Kulkarni was arrested by the CBI on 5 November 2020. In August 2021, he was granted bail by the Supreme Court with conditions including a ban on entering Dharwad district.
However, in June 2025, the Supreme Court revoked his bail following allegations of witness tampering and attempts to influence prosecution witnesses.
Kulkarni again applied for bail in January 2026, but the Supreme Court rejected it citing rules of procedure. However, the Supreme Court granted bail on February 27 after recording the examination of all the witnesses.
Kulkarni is likely to face disqualification as an MLA.
(With input from agencies)
