The city witnessed two brutal murders within an hour on Sunday night sending shockwaves across the city. A murder took place near Lakdapul Square over monetary dispute while another took was reported from Agrasen Square on Central Avenue, reportedly due to an illicit relationship. In both the cases, police acted quickly and arrested three of the accused persons, including two brothers. A person is still absconding and search is on to nab him. Cases have been registered at Kotwali and Tehsil police stations and all three arrested were produced before the court on Monday and have been remanded to police custody.

 

The first incident occurred around 11 pm on Sunday night. Rahul Mohan Pandey (24), a resident of Bhuteshwar Nagar, was murdered near Lakdapul Square. He was reportedly involved in criminal activities and had several cases registered against him. A few days ago, Rahul had lent Rs 8,000 to his friend Rohit Namdev Chandekar (29), who also has a criminal background. When Rohit failed to repay the amount despite repeated reminders, Rahul demanded the money back several times which led to arguments between the two. On Sunday night, Rohit called Rahul to meet him at Lakdapul Square, under the pretext of returning the money. Rahul arrived with another friend on a two-wheeler. Rohit was accompanied by his elder brother Vicky Chandekar (33) and their friend Niraj Larokar, all residents of Nawabpura. As soon as they met, a heated argument broke out. When Rahul and his friend tried to intervene, Rohit stabbed Rahul with a knife. Rahul died on the spot, while his friend was also injured in the attack. After committing the crime, the accused fled the scene. However, the police acted fast and arrested both Rohit and Vicky late Sunday night. Niraj Larokar is still on the run. All arrested accused were produced in the court on Monday and sent to police custody. 

 

 

Just 15 minutes later, another murder took place on Central Avenue near Agrasen Square. The deceased, 40-year-old Anna alias Shailesh, was a garbage picker who lived on the footpath in the Shanti Nagar Ambedkar Square area. He used to work alongside Anurag alias Ghoda Sunil Borkar (33) and his wife, who also lived and worked on the streets. According to police, Anna developed an illicit relationship with Anurag’s wife. This had led to several quarrels between Anurag and Anna in the past. Anna reportedly told Anurag’s wife to leave him and marry him instead. On Sunday night around 10.15 pm, Anurag saw his wife and Anna together near Agrasen Square. Furious, he picked up a heavy stone and smashed it on Anna’s head while he was sitting on a chair. The blow was so severe that Anna died on the spot. After committing the murder, Anurag tried to escape but was caught by police within a short time. He was also produced before the court on Monday and remanded to police custody. Police have registered separate cases in Kotwali and Tehsil police stations.