Scholar MM Kalburgi was shot dead at his home in Karnataka on Sunday
To pursue that line of investigation, police teams will travel to Maharashtra, senior police officer Pandurang Rane told NDTV on Tuesday.
Four police teams have been formed to investigate the murder of Dr Kalburgi, a well-known rationalist and left ideologue who had faced threats from rightwing Hindu groups.
Dr Kalburgi was shot dead on his doorstep in Dharwad town by two men who came on a bike and asked for “sir”. The police believe hired killers were used.
“The killing has been done professionally. Professional killers are very unusual to this region,” Mr Rane said.
In August 2013, anti-superstition activist Narendra Dabholkar was shot dead in Pune while he was out on a morning walk. In February this year, social activist and veteran CPI leader Govind Pansare — who was leading a campaign against toll tax among other issues — was shot dead in similar circumstances in Kolhapur.
In all three cases, there were two men, who struck in the morning and used a bike.
To investigate the links between these killings, the police will travel to Kolhapur and Pune, the hometowns of Narendra Dabholkar and Govind Pansare.
The police officer said all possible motives were being investigated, “including the property angle.” He added that groups that had protested against Dr Kalburgi are also being investigated.
The family of the 77-year-old rationalist has alleged that he was killed for his beliefs.
The professor had received many threats to his life and had been given armed escort, which was withdrawn recently on his request.
A Bajrang Dal activist who had posted a threatening tweet after Dr Kalburgi’s murder was arrested yesterday but released hours later.
The Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) has asserted that no rightwing group had threatened Dr Kalburgi.
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