As a special court in Bengaluru, on Thursday, sentenced Congress MLA and former Minister Vinay Kulkarni and 16 other convicts to imprisonment for life for criminal conspiracy and the murder of BJP zilla panchayat member Yogeeshgouda Goudar in Dharwad in 2016, the victim’s elder sister Akkamahadevi celebrated the conviction by bursting crackers.

Akkamma alias Akkamahadevi, who resides in Daroga Oni in Dharwad, told reporters that she was happy that, finally, after ten years since her brother’s murder, justice had been served. Yogeeshgouda’s brother Gurunathgouda was not available for comment.

Meanwhile, Yogeeshgouda’s wife Mallamma told press persons that she was neither happy nor sad over the verdict and that she would obey the court, which had analysed everything before delivering judgment. “In the last ten years, my children and I have suffered a lot. Yogeeshgouda will always be with us in spirit. I will not say anything about the guilty, as they will receive punishment for the mistakes they committed,” she said.

Basavaraj Korawar, a former policeman who led the fight for a CBI investigation into the case, welcomed the verdict. Every attempt was made to cover up the case in connivance with a few police officials, but finally justice had been delivered to Yogeeshgouda’s family, he said.

He said he was neither happy nor sad over the verdict because, when the murder took place, the same government was in power. “The same Chief Minister and Home Minister were in office. The practice of transferring police officers based on letters from legislators should stop. I will make an appeal to the chief minister in this regard,” he said.

As a precautionary measure, police security around Mr. Korawar’s residence has been beefed up, and also around the house of Basavaraj Muttagi, an accused turned approver in the case.