No adjournment on October 27, and counter affidavits due three days before that date: the Supreme Court has issued notice on Karnataka’s plea against the suspension of Vinay Kulkarni’s murder conviction.
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New Delhi: Issuing notice on a plea by the State of Karnataka against the Karnataka High Court’s order that suspended the conviction and sentence of former Congress MLA Vinay Kulkarni and two co-accused in the 2016 murder of Yogesh Goudar, a Zilla Panchayat member, and granted Kulkarni bail, the Supreme Court on Friday (October 9) took up the matter [State of Karnataka v. Vinay Rajashekharappa Kulkarni and Another].
A Bench of Justice Prashant Kumar Mishra and Justice Shree Chandrashekhar directed that counter affidavits be filed within three days before the next date and posted the matters on October 27, 2026, at the top of the board. The Court has expressed no view on the merits, and the appeals against conviction remain pending before the High Court.
Notice, and a warning on adjournments
“Issue notice.”
“It is made clear that request for adjournment shall not be entertained on the next date of hearing.”
Senior advocates appeared on both sides, including Mahesh Jethmalani and the Additional Solicitor General for the petitioners, and Nagamuthu, Dr. Abhishek Manu Singhvi and Rahul Kaushik for the respondents.
What the High Court had done
Pending disposal of his appeal, the High Court stayed Kulkarni’s conviction and granted him bail on conditions.
It also suspended the conviction and sentence of co-accused Chandrashekhar Indi alias Chandu Mama and Channakeshava B. Tingarikar. The notice issued by the Supreme Court covers the suspension of the conviction and sentence of all three.
The 2016 killing and the trial
Goudar was shot dead at his gym in Saptapur, Dharwad, in 2016. An FIR was registered at the Dharwad Sub-Urban Police Station on his wife’s complaint, six persons were arrested and charge-sheeted, and the investigation was later transferred to the CBI. A Special Court convicted Vinay Kulkarni and others in April this year.
Why the order matters
The order puts the High Court’s suspension of a murder conviction under the Supreme Court’s scrutiny and fixes an early, no-adjournment hearing. Whether the suspension of conviction and sentence stands will now be examined after both sides file their responses.
Case Title: State of Karnataka v. Vinay Rajashekharappa Kulkarni and Another [SLP(Crl.) Nos. 18840/2026, 18898/2026 and 18154/2026]
Bench: Justice Prashant Kumar Mishra and Justice Shree Chandrashekhar, Supreme Court of India
Date of Order: October 9, 2026
Appearances: Senior Advocates Mahesh Jethmalani and the Additional Solicitor General for the petitioners; Senior Advocates Nagamuthu, Dr. Abhishek Manu Singhvi and Rahul Kaushik for the respondents