The division bench of Justice K S Mudagal and Justice M G S Kamal of the High Court of Karnataka Dharwad bench has acquitted the accused in the Kuvempu Nagar Belagavi triple murder accused in 2015.
The HC bench found that the allegations of murders were not proved beyond reasonable doubt and citing a lack of evidence against him, acquitted him.
The district and sessions court prosecution had relied much on the circumstantial evidence, telephone call records and expert evidence. But the High Court Bench held that the prosecution had failed to prove all the links in the chain of circumstances.
Praveen Bhat, the accused had filed an appeal with the High court against the order of the Sessions Court in Belagavi which had found him guilty of the murders and sentenced him to life imprisonment in April 2018.
The two-judge bench vindicated the accused Praveen Subramanyam Bhat of all charges against him on June 21 and on the same he was released from the Hindalga Jail.
Praveen was charged with killing Reena by slitting her throat with a knife and later drowned Reena’s two kids in a bucket.