Home Minister Ramalinga Reddy has expressed his confidence in the Special Investigating Team (SIT) working on the brutal murder of Gauri Lankesh and bringing the guilty to book.
“The SIT has been discharging its duties efficiently. It has been pursuing definite clues and will emerge successful in nabbing all those involved in the murder of Gauri Lankesh,” he said.
Mr. Reddy was participating in the ‘Vanabhojana’ organised by the Reddy community on Sunday.
Iron ore transport
Defending the government’s entrusting of the investigation of illegal transport of iron ore from various ports, he said that it was necessary to recover the enormous loss caused to the exchequer.
“Earlier, the State government had entrusted the task to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), which collected all the information, including the quantum of ore shipped from the ports and gave a report that there was no evidence. In order to recover the enormous loss caused to the exchequer, the State government decided to hand over the case to SIT,” he said.
Mr. Reddy, when asked whether the CBI’s handing over the case back saying there was no evidence showed its inefficiency, did not wish to comment. However, he said the CBI, which had probed the issue and ascertained all the details, could have proceeded further but decided to wash its hands off.
He said that the State government was committed to getting the illegal mining thoroughly probed and recovering the loss of revenue owing to it. “I am confident that the SIT will discharge its duties efficiently. The matter is coming before the next Cabinet, which will take a decision on putting a time-frame for completing the probe,” he added.
