Gauri Lankesh murder: Suspect taken into custody

The Karnataka Police has taken a suspected accused KT Naveen Kumar into police custody for questioning in connection with the murder of journalist and activist Gauri Lankesh.

As per media reports, Naveen was caught by the crime wing of the state police's central crime branch on February 18.

Gauri, who was known for her anti-right wing views, was shot by three unidentified men outside her home in Rajarajeshwari Nagar on September 5 last year. Lankesh's murder has been compared to the murders of author Narendra Dabholkar and scholars MM Kalburgi. 

The SIT had last month released three sketches of the two suspects in the case. The SIT also released a video of the recce done by the suspects. 

The man who shot her had arrived at the scene on a motorcycle with another man and was wearing a motorcycle helmet when the murder took place. A reward of Rs 10 lakh had also been announced for leads that lead to the arrest of the murderers.

The murder of Gauri Lankesh triggered outrage across the nation, BJP leader KS Esharappa criticised the Congress-led government in Karnataka for allegedly failing to protect Gauri and others.