MYSURU: An 83-year-old, retired Intelligence Bureau (CIB) officer was killed over a property dispute on Friday. Earlier, it was believed to be a hit-and-run case. Footage from CCTV shows a car approaching the man and knocking him down when he was on his morning walk.
The deceased R N Kulakarni, was a resident of Sharadadevi Nagar, TK Layout, in Mysuru. The incident occurred when Kulkarni was walking on a deserted road on the Manasa Gangothri campus, as was his routine. Locals rushed him to a hospital, but he died later without responding to the treatment.
The police have formed three teams to crack the case. The Jayalakshmipuram station police intensified their probe based on a complaint given by Kulkarni’s son-in-law Sanjay. His son Rohan Kulkarni resides in the USA.
Initially, the incident seemed to be a hit-and-run case. However, initial investigation, the police concluded that it was a planned murder by miscreants.
According to Sanjay’s complaint, he raised suspicions about his neighbour Madappa, who is building a house adjacent to Kulkarni’s residence. Kulkarni filed a case against him and secured an injunction order from court against the construction. Kulkarni had a dispute with Madappa and his children about the same and Madappa had allegedly threatened him. Sanjay suspected that Madappa’s children had committed this murder.
Footage from CCTV camera shows a car, without a number plate, deliberately knocking down Kulkarni, who was thrown to the side of the road.
Mysuru Police Commissioner Dr Chandragupta, who briefed the media about the incident, however declined to reveal more stating that the probe is in the initial stage of investigation.
Based on the CCTV video, the police are investigating all angles in the case. On Saturday, the police were believed to have taken three people into custody for questioning. While one police team is analysing data on phones that were active in the area during the time of the incident, based on tower logs, another team is believed to be checking car garages on the lookout for a grey car.