How a ransom phone call helped Indore Police crack Bhaiyyuji Maharaj suicide case
Indore Range's DIG Harinarayankar Mishra told India Today TV that a phone call gave a new direction to the investigations in the Bhaiyyuji Maharaj suicide case.
In Short
- Police investigation was on for the past six months
- One of the accused, Palak, had worked as Bhaiyyuji's secretary
- She had constantly been pressuring Bhaiyyuji to marry her
Indore Police has claimed to have cracked the Bhayyuji Maharaj suicide case. Police say the solution came from a ransom call. Indore Range's DIG Harinarayankar Mishra told India Today TV that a phone call gave a new direction to the investigations in the Bhaiyyuji Maharaj suicide case.
Bhayyuji Maharaj was one of the five sants’ to whom the previous Shivraj Singh Chouhan government in Madhya Pradesh had granted the status of Minister of State (MoS) in April 2018. Bhayyuji had, however, refused to accept the post, saying it holds no importance for a sant".
Mishra said police investigation was on for the past six months. During the investigation, a lawyer associated with Bhaiyyuji Maharaj's trust received a ransom call of Rs 5 crore.
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We received a complaint and started monitoring the number. Within few days, the phone number led us to the driver of Bhaiyyuji Maharaj. The information he provided was totally different from the ongoing investigation in the suicide case, DIG Harinarayanchari Mishra said.
The driver revealed that days after Bhaiyyuji’s suicide, there was a clash between his family members and volunteers of his trust.
On the basis of the driver's statement, the Indore Police questioned 125 people from different places and registered official statements of 28 people. According to the DIG, based on these statements and digital evidences (phone call records and old chats) police arrested Vinayak, Sharad and Palak.
Palak had earlier worked as Bhayyuji’s secretary and had constantly been pressuring him to marry her. Police allege that she threatened Bhaiyyuji Maharaj of slapping police cases against him if he refused to do so. According to the police, the accused had a screenshot of some objectionable chats which she used to blackmail Bhaiyyuji.
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