Two held for murder in Jodhpur Park flat
Dwaipayan Ghosh | TNN | Updated: Apr 7, 2019, 06:30 IST
Shyamali Ghosh's residence and (R) the two accusedKOLKATA: Hours after TOI reported the recovery of a red diary — with entries made from the end of 2018 right up to April 1 this year — from the Jodhpur Park murder victim’s house, the Lake police arrested two of 75-year-old Shyamali Ghosh’s alleged killers — gardener Swapan Mondal (46) and caretaker Sanjib Das (51). However, the cops said it seemed like the two had merely executed a plan devised by someone else as no strong motive could be attributed to them.
DC (southeast) Kalyan Mukherjee told the media that both accused have owned up to committing the crime. “The actual plan, though, was hatched by someone else who wanted the victim to vacate the flat. It was this person who convinced the two men to commit the crime. It was important that they chose them given that the victim rarely allowed anyone else to enter her residence. However, there is a lot more here than mere occupation of property and we will unravel other details soon. We will investigate all angles. While no one in the direct family is a suspect right now, her neighbours and extended family members are being questioned as there are certain discrepancies in their statements,” an officer said.
Police said there was one entry in that red diary that they found intriguing — Ghosh had named a few persons who could murder her. “She was afraid of dying an unnatural death. There were three names in it and we began questioning these people repeatedly. Faced with intense interrogation, they began changing statements and finally, the duo broke down,” said an officer.
The police said last Tuesday, the accused gained access to Ghosh’s flat on the pretext of supplying flowers for her puja. “They knew she was pious and used that fact to enter her home. Once she entered the kitchen, the two dragged her to her bedroom before hitting her with iron prongs and finally smothered her. The two then stayed back for several minutes to ensure she was dead and then locked the door behind them,” said DC Mukherjee.
Police said both accused had tried to come up with alibis for Tuesday, but failed.
“It was Das who initially hit her. What is important here is to note that this house’s ownership still lies with Ghosh’s parents,” said an officer.
DC (southeast) Kalyan Mukherjee told the media that both accused have owned up to committing the crime. “The actual plan, though, was hatched by someone else who wanted the victim to vacate the flat. It was this person who convinced the two men to commit the crime. It was important that they chose them given that the victim rarely allowed anyone else to enter her residence. However, there is a lot more here than mere occupation of property and we will unravel other details soon. We will investigate all angles. While no one in the direct family is a suspect right now, her neighbours and extended family members are being questioned as there are certain discrepancies in their statements,” an officer said.
Police said there was one entry in that red diary that they found intriguing — Ghosh had named a few persons who could murder her. “She was afraid of dying an unnatural death. There were three names in it and we began questioning these people repeatedly. Faced with intense interrogation, they began changing statements and finally, the duo broke down,” said an officer.
The police said last Tuesday, the accused gained access to Ghosh’s flat on the pretext of supplying flowers for her puja. “They knew she was pious and used that fact to enter her home. Once she entered the kitchen, the two dragged her to her bedroom before hitting her with iron prongs and finally smothered her. The two then stayed back for several minutes to ensure she was dead and then locked the door behind them,” said DC Mukherjee.
Police said both accused had tried to come up with alibis for Tuesday, but failed.
“It was Das who initially hit her. What is important here is to note that this house’s ownership still lies with Ghosh’s parents,” said an officer.
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