Special Investigation Team officials will take K.T. Naveen Kumar, arrested for his alleged role as a gunrunner in the murder of journalist Gauri Lankesh, to the Forensic Science Laboratory in Ahmedabad where he will undergo neuropsychological tests. The 37-year-old founder of the Hindu Yuva Sene is currently lodged in the Parappana Agrahara Central Jail in Bengaluru.
“The FSL in Gandhinagar has agreed to carry out the required tests between April 16 and April 30,” said a senior SIT official.
The third Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate court had given permission for the tests on March 12 after Naveen gave his consent.
The police will most likely take him to Ahmedabad on April 16, said sources. Soon after he was informed of this development, Naveen withdrew his consent.
He wrote to the jailer seeking his help to inform the court that he was no longer willing to undergo the tests.
In his letter, he alleged that the police had coerced him to give his consent to the magistrate with the promise that they would help him get bail.
However, senior SIT officials said that his latest retraction will not hold as he had already agreed to it in court. “We will conduct polygraph and brain electrical oscillations signature profiling (brain mapping) which will help our investigation,” the official added.
When he was first produced in court Naveen had refused to be subjected to the tests. But a few days later, he deposed before the magistrate and said that he was ready to cooperate with the police.
Naveen’s lawyer Veda Murthy has asked permission to be present during the tests. “I’ve asked the SIT to inform me of the dates and will approach the court for more clarity on this,” Mr. Murthy said.
Naveen was initially arrested by the Central Crime Branch on February 19 for ‘illegally’ possessing a firearm and fifteen .32 calibre live bullets.
The SIT arrested him on March 9 for his alleged involvement in the Gauri Lankesh case and also booked him for allegedly plotting to assassinate writer and rationalist K.S. Bhagavan.
