Hitmen hired by Hindutva group may have killed Kalburgi, say CID officials

April 22, 2016

Bengaluru, Apr 22: Sources in the Criminal Investigation Department, which is probing the murder case of Kannada scholar MM Kalburgi said that supari killers, hired by a Hindutva group might have committed the crime.

CID officials said 20 such Hindutva groups were under surveillance over the past three months, and they are now close to cracking the identity of the group. However, they refused to comment further on the issue as it could hamper the probe.

CID sources said they had been working on the theory that hired hitmen shot down Kalburgi at his Kalyan Nagar residence in Dharwad on August 30 last year. When quizzed whether the new lead meant the sleuths had zeroed in on the group involved in the murder, the official said they were close to cracking the identity of the killers. The official also said they believed the same group and probably the same hit men may have been involved in the murders of rationalist Narendra Dabholkar and social activist Govind Pansare.

The basis for this, sleuths said, was the ballistic report of the bullets used in the Kalburgi murder that linked the weapon used in the two earlier assassinations. If proved right, it would be contrary to the arrests made by the Maharashtra police in the two murders. The Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing the Pansare murder case, had arrested Samir Gaikwad, an alleged activist from Goa-based Sanatan Sanstha, for the murder. The police are on the lookout for another absconding accused, Rudra Patil, in the case.

All officials involved in the probe, led by Inspector-General of Police Hemanth Nimbalkar, have been camping in Dharwad for the past two days. They even visited the house of the slain scholar on Thursday. Officials said they wanted to verify certain information with the family members, but beyond that the visit was a courtesy one.

Mr. Nimbalkar said they reviewed the probe into the case in the light of the new leads, and brainstormed over the next course of action. This is the first such meeting in recent months.

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Elusive bamboo shrimp resurfaces in Mangaluru estuary after 70 years

News Network

December 7,2025

Mangaluru, Dec 7: A rare bamboo shrimp has been rediscovered on mainland India more than 70 years after it was last reported, confirming for the first time the presence of Atyopsis spinipes in the country. The find was made by researchers from the Centre for Climate Change Studies at Sathyabama Institute of Science and Technology, Chennai, during surveys in Karnataka and Odisha.

The team — shrimp expert Dr S Prakash, PhD scholar K Kunjulakshmi, and Mangaluru-based researcher Maclean Antony Santos — combined field surveys, ecological assessments and DNA analysis to identify the elusive species. Their findings, published in Zootaxa, resolve decades of taxonomic confusion stemming from a 1951 report that misidentified the species as Atyopsis moluccensis without strong evidence.

The shrimp has now been confirmed at two locations: the Mulki–Pavanje estuary near Mangaluru and the Kuakhai River in Bhubaneswar. Historical specimens from the Andaman Islands, previously labelled as A. moluccensis, were also found to be misidentified and actually belong to A. spinipes.

The rediscovery began after an aquarium hobbyist in Odisha spotted a shrimp in 2022, prompting systematic surveys across Udupi, Karwar and Mangaluru. Four female specimens were collected in Mulki and one in Odisha, all genetically matching.

Researchers warn the species may exist in very small, vulnerable populations as freshwater habitats face increasing pressure from pollution, sand mining and infrastructure development. All verified specimens have been deposited with the Zoological Survey of India for future reference.

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