Cops suspect foul play

Cops negate AoL's claim of bid on spiritual guru's life; suspect foul play, as media was informed about the incident before the police

Cops negate AoL's claim of bid on spiritual guru's life; suspect foul play, as media was informed about the incident before the police

Expert findingsu00a0 have refuted claims of bid on the spiritual guru's life at the Art of Living (AoL) ashram. Forensic Science Laboratory'su00a0 (FSL) preliminary assessment has concluded that the shootout was not an attack on Sri Sri Ravishankar.

According to the report, the bullet bore no trajectory mark and was shot from a distance of about 700 to 800 ft.
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"Our preliminary investigations don't support the theory of bid on Ravishankar's life," said an FSL official, on condition of anonymity. He added that the bullet might have fallen in the ashram after being shot in air.

The supposed assailant didn't have intentions of causing harm to Sri Sri Ravishankar.

It's strange

While FSL doesn't see any necessity of further investigation, cops studying the case are puzzled by some unusual occurrence.

A senior official who's a member of the investigation team, on the condition of anonymity, said, "The incident took place at around 6 pm but we were informed at 9 pm.
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In fact, the media was at the spot half-an-hour before we could reach."

Not to harm

He added, "It seems that the assailant didn't have intentions of causing harm to anyone, because Vinay, who was hit by the bullet, didn't have any serious injuries.
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"No one even saw the assailant, despite the fact that the place was swarming with people. Such odd instances have forced us to suspect that there's something fishy about the entire episode," he said.

Moreover, he revealed that Sri Sri wasn't even present at the time of the so-called shootout.

The Director General of Police, Karnataka, who also visited ashram early in the day, maintained it wasn't an attack.

When contacted, Charu, spokesperson of the AoL, denied commenting on the issue. "I have no idea about the time the cops were informed about the incident."

Meanwhile, the cops are conducting a security audit to increase the safety cover at the ashram.

Ajai Kumar Singh, DG-IGP of Karnataka, said, "We'll take appropriate action after reviewing the aspects such as the access to the ashram, and its surveillance area."