Police officer from Shil Daighar police station has nabbed three ‘sadhus’ of a temple at Daighar for murdering a 30 year old lady from Belapur village who had gone missing on June 6. The deceased, identified as Akshata Kunal Mhatre from Belapur village, had left home on June 6 following a domestic fight at home. Mhatre’s parents resided at Koparkhairane. According to police, Mhatre used to go to temple every Saturday and July 6, when she did not come back home, her husband contacted her parents to check if she had gone there but the parents told that she had not. After which the husband registered a missing person’s complaint with NRI Coastal police.
On Tuesday, a visitor at Ghol Ganapati temple near Kalyan Shilphata, saw a body of a lady near the temple premises near the steep area besides the stairs to the temple. The temple is located on hillock near Shilphata. The visitor informed the police following which police officials from Shil Daighar police station reached the spot.
“The body had head injuries, strangulation marks, scratches on the back and also a rib fracture. We are awaiting doctor’s say as well to know if she was sexually abused before the murder,” senior police from Shil Daighar police station said.
During the course of the investigations, the police found cctv footage of the lady going up to the temple but not of she coming back. The police suspected that someone who stays on the hillock to be behind the murder. In the investigations the police found that the three ‘Sadhus’ of the temple always stayed there and nabbed them.
The sadhus aged 62, 54 and 28, were presented before the court on Thursday and have been remanded to police custody till July 16. The police suspect that after the fight at home, Mhatre had gone to the temple and was found sitting there alone in the premises by the three men who tried to abuse her when she retaliated, she was killed.
“We have got the police custody of the suspects and during the custody period, we would interrogate them further to get more clarity on the motive behind the murder,” the officer added.
