Mangaluru: The II additional district and sessions (special) court judge Jagadeesh VN on Monday sentenced four men to life imprisonment for the murder of Gangadhara Pangala, 55. He was killed on May 14, 2014, following a conspiracy allegedly triggered by a dispute within the Baikampady Mogaveera Mahasabha.The convicts, Satish Baikampady, 58, Harish Baikampady, 60, Bhaskar Baikampady, 61, and Pushparaj, 47 were found guilty.According to special public prosecutor Jyothi Pramod Nayak, the case stemmed from Satish Baikampady’s tenure as president of the Baikampady Mogaveera Mahasabha, during which he was accused of misusing funds meant for the reconstruction of the Gopalakrishna Bhajana Mandir at Meenakaliya and the construction of a high school building. Following the allegations, Satish and Bhaskar were suspended from the Mahasabha.The prosecution argued that the accused held Pangala responsible for their suspension and alleged defamation, leading Satish, Harish and Bhaskar to conspire to eliminate him. On May 13, 2014, the trio, along with their associate Pushparaj, allegedly planned the murder after tracking Pangala’s movements. Their first attempt to execute the plan failed.The following day, after Pangala attended a Tambila programme, the accused received information about his return journey. As Pangala got off a car near Baikampady and was heading home on his scooter, Pushparaj allegedly rammed an SUV into the two-wheeler from behind, killing him on the spot.The public prosecutor said that the accused attempted to destroy evidence by hiding the SUV used in the crime at a private garage in the city. Panambur police had registered a case under Sections 302, 120B, 201 and 109 read with section 34 of the IPC.During the trial, which began last year, the court examined 43 witnesses before convicting all four accused .Apart from life imprisonment, the court imposed a fine of Rs 15,000 on each convict. The four were also sentenced to two years’ simple imprisonment and fined Rs 1,000 each for causing the disappearance of evidence under section 201 IPC. The sentences will run concurrently.The court further directed that Rs 50,000 from the total fine amount be paid as compensation to the deceased’s daughter.
