Bhowanipore trader killed by biz partner, body dumped in Nimta house water tank
Times of India | 14 March 2024
KOLKATA: The body of a 44-year-old medicine wholesaler from Bhowanipore, who went missing from Ballygunge Circular Road on Monday, was found inside a water reservoir on the terrace of his business partner's house in Nimta, north Dum Dum, on Wednesday morning.
Police suspect a dispute over Rs 50 lakh that the accused Anirban Gupta (40) had taken from victim Bhavya Lakhani led to the murder.Gupta had allegedly taken the money on the pretext of giving it to the pharma company he used to work for.
Gupta has been arrested along with aide Suman Das (38) of Jorabagan, who allegedly helped murder Lakhani and then dump his body in the tank. Gupta reportedly paid him Rs 2,000 and asked him to take Lakhani's phone to Kolkata and dispose it of. Accordingly, the latter dumped the phone inside a public toilet in the Burtolla area.
The accused have been remanded in police custody till March 27.
Prima facie it appears that the trader was battered to death with a cricket bat and stump. There were injury marks on his head, forehead, righ eyebrow and right arm. The assailants had also tightly wrapped an adhesive tape around his neck eight times.
After he died, the body was stuffed in a gunny bag and dumped in the tank. A concrete wall was also erected overnight to conceal the body. Police had to dismantle the wall to recover the body.
Police said Gupta had opened a fake email ID in the name of a pharma company and from it, he sent a mail to Lakhani, stating that the company had returned the entire amount to Lakhani. Sources said he had lured Lakhani to his house in Nimta's Probodh Mitra Lane with the assurance of settling the dues. Gupta, who claimed to be the chief medical representative of the firm, had allegedly borrowed the sum from Gupta for supplying medicines. But he didn't supply any medicine, nor did he return the money, said joint CP (crime) Syed Waquar Raza. The homicide wing of detective department has taken over the case.
A family member said Lakhani had met Gupta about a year ago. The latter had claimed he could supply important medicines at good rates and had borrowed Rs 20 lakh initially. Subsequently, the amount balooned to Rs 50 lakh. He later claimed that he had lost his job.
According to Lakhani's brother-in-law, it was Gupta who had called him on Monday morning. Lakhani had thereafter hired an app cab and left, stating he would go to office and then to his friend's residence.
Lakhani's wife spoke to him around 3 pm on Monday. That was the last conversation they had. Thereafter, calls to his phone went unanswered. During investigation, police recovered Lakhani's cell phone from Beadon Street. The last call from the phone was to Gupta.