‘Will commit suicide if subjected to lie detector tests’: Suspect in Gauri murder threatens SIT

coastaldigest.com web desk

April 23, 2018

Bengaluru, Apr 23: K T Naveen Kumar aka Hotte Manja, a weapons supplier and Hindutva leader, who is one of the suspects in the murder case of journalist Gauri Lankesh has threatened the Special Investigation Team (SIT) that he would commit suicide if he was subjected to narcoanalysis tests.

38-year-old Kumar had earlier told a sessions court in Bengaluru that he was willing to undergo the tests. A senior police officer in the SIT said that as per the Supreme Court guidelines, Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) officials conducting the tests must take written consent from a suspect even after the court's permission.

FSL officials had given the SIT dates between April 16 and 30 for conducting the tests. SIT sleuths picked up Kumar from the Central Prison, Parappana Agrahara, on April 14 and took him to Gandhinagar.

When FSL officials explained to Kumar about what will happen to his body when he undergoes polygraph and Brain Electrical Oscillation Signature Profiling (BEOS) tests, he started screaming and threatened to commit suicide. As a result, the tests couldn't take place, and the SIT had to bring him back to Bengaluru.

An SIT official said Kumar's refusal to undergo the tests would be brought to the notice of the court and that they would seek his custody for further interrogation. Meanwhile, Veda Murthy, the counsel for Kumar, said his bail application was likely to be moved this week.

Comments

Perhaps he will commit suicide, his Sanghi Masters may have threatned to eliminate his family, if he goes for Narco test. Obviously he feels betrayed and helpless. So he has no choice (?). But why is the investigation team waiting for a criminals approval for Narco test ?

No criminal will give consent for narco test if he committed crime

Why cops asking about criminal's consent in narco test. If didn't ask, don't concern about that threat.

His statement to commit suicide is clear proof of his involvement in Gauri lankesh murder,if he did so it is a punishment from God for his crime let him try.

When will get over "further investigation".. why govt wasting money. Should do first and hang him asap

Now only 85 percent confirmed. Now only need to know the way he did and involvement of big leaders

Govt wasting money. Cops may arrange more protection to him till the probe getting over

Who cares...! better to do that. then can cut short some procedure

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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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Udupi: Hindutva activist arrested for allegedly raping young woman while out on bail

News Network

December 1,2025

Udupi, Dec 1: A horrific case of alleged rape has unfolded in Udupi, where a worker from a Hindutva organisation, previously arrested and released on bail for harassing a young woman, is now accused of waylaying and sexually assaulting her.

The arrested individual has been identified as Pradeep Poojary (26), a member of the Hindu Jagarana Vedike's Nairkode unit in Perdur.

Poojary had allegedly been relentlessly harassing the young woman, pressuring her to marry him. When she bravely stood up to him and refused his demands, she filed a formal complaint at the Hiriyadka police station. He was subsequently arrested in that initial harassment case but was later granted bail.

According to police reports, driven by the same malicious grudge, Poojary allegedly intercepted the woman again on November 29. While she was walking through a deserted area, the accused is claimed to have threatened her by grabbing her neck. When she again refused to marry him, he allegedly proceeded to rape her.

The survivor immediately informed her family about the traumatic assault. Following this, her parents lodged a complaint at the Udupi women’s police station.

Police arrested Poojary again and produced him before the court. He has since been remanded to judicial custody.

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