Bengaluru, 17 April

A Bengaluru court on Friday sentenced Congress MLA Vinay Kulkarni to life imprisonment in the BJP leader  Yogesh Gowda Goudar's murder case.

The court also sentenced 15 others convicted in connection with the case to life imprisonment.

On Wednesday, Santhosh Gajanan Bhat, the Judge of the Special Court for cases involving elected representatives, convicted Kulkarni and others under IPC sections, including criminal conspiracy and murder.

The case pertains to the killing of Goudar, a BJP zilla panchayat member, in Dharwad on 15 June 2016. Kulkarni was a minister at that time.

Hired assailants attacked and hacked Goudar to death in his gym at Saptapur in Dharwad.

Following demands from Goudar's family and others, the then BJP government transferred the case to the CBI in 2019.

CBI advocate Hema stated that the central agency filed a chargesheet against 21 people in connection with the case. The court, after conducting the trial, convicted 17 accused persons for murder, conspiracy, destroying evidence, and screening the offenders.

Speaking to reporters, she said the court passed sentence today, giving the 16 accused persons "double life imprisonment" for both murder and conspiracy. "The accused persons will remain in jail until their death," she added.

Another accused, who was the circle inspector of police, was charged with destroying evidence and screening the offender, the advocate added. "He was given 7 years of rigorous imprisonment."

Hema said the court imposed a total fine of about Rs 12.50 lakh and awarded Rs 16 lakh in compensation to the victims' children and brother Gurunath Goudar.

She said the main challenge in this case was that many witnesses were threatened "not to tell the truth."

Kulkarni faces disqualification as an MLA following this sentencing, official sources said.

While the CBI sought a life sentence without remission for Kulkarni, who is accused number 15, on 16 April, the MLA's advocate appealed for the minimum sentence, citing his social services, political background and responsibilities toward his children and other family members.

According to advocates, approver evidence, eyewitness evidence, CDRs, tower locations, and CCTV footage were key evidence for the case.

Another CBI advocate said the accused persons will have to spend time in jail until their natural death. The government holds the power of remission after 14 years.

The CBI filed a supplementary chargesheet in 2020, naming Kulkarni as the 'main conspirator'. It is alleged that he perceived Goudar as a growing political rival in Dharwad and hired contract killers to eliminate him.

Kulkarni was arrested by the CBI in 2020. He got bail from the Supreme Court in August 2021 under conditions, including a ban on entering the Dharwad district.

However, in June 2025, the apex court cancelled his bail, following allegations of witness tampering and attempts to influence prosecution witnesses.

Kulkarni again sought bail in January 2026, but the High Court rejected it, citing judicial propriety. However, the Supreme Court granted bail on 27 February after noting all witnesses had been examined.