In March, Sandeep Manjaragi, a 46-year-old ex-serviceman, was believed to have died of a heart attack after an accident in Karnataka’s Belagavi. The police now say his death was the result of a calculated crime tied to a secret affair, corrupt officials, insurance money, and a strained relationship. Nine people have been arrested in the case, including a doctor and forensic science laboratory (FSL) officials, exposing an elaborate conspiracy.
On March 13, Sandeep, who was riding his two-wheeler, was involved in an accident. He was shifted to Hukkeri government hospital. When his wife Suma arrived, she shifted him to J G Co-operative Hospital and Research Institute in Ghataprabha. At the time, the local police recorded his video statement. Sandeep chose not to file a complaint.
Two days later, Sandeep died. The police decided to shift his body to Belagavi Institute of Medical Sciences (BIMS), where a post-mortem was conducted. The report suggested that he died of a heart attack and not due to any serious injuries from the accident.
“Generally, in road accidents, only in rare scenarios does a heart attack take place,” K Ramarajan, Belagavi Superintendent of Police, said. As a precaution, the police sent samples to the FSL to rule out foul play. The police received a report indicating that it was a heart attack and that there was no poisoning.
A WhatsApp status opens the case
The police believed the case was closed—until Pundalik Dombar posted a video on social media and his WhatsApp status last week, alleging that Sandeep was murdered. When the police detained Dombar and questioned him, he allegedly revealed details of the elaborate plan to murder Sandeep.
According to SP Ramarajan, Sandeep retired in December 2023 and returned to his village, where he met Dombar. The two became friends and opened a small shop in the village. Soon after, Sandeep’s wife, Suma, and Dombar allegedly began an affair.
In 2025, Suma and Dombar allegedly decided to murder Sandeep and make some money out of it. “They took three accident insurance policies—two in HDFC and one in SBI. The total worth was Rs 2 crore. We believe that Sandeep was unaware of the insurance taken in his name, but this needs to be verified,” said SP Ramarajan.
Suma allegedly believed that because Sandeep drank regularly, he might die in a road accident or one could be staged, a police officer said.
The March 13 accident saw Suma and Dombar put their plan into action, according to the police. “Pundalik’s relative Rahul Jogi worked at JG Hospital, and they decided to shift him there. Sandeep was admitted to a private ward to ensure privacy. Dombar, based on Rahul’s suggestion, brought a saline bottle, but it was adulterated with rat poison and insecticide. Thirty minutes after administering it to Sandeep, he passed away due to a heart attack,” said SP Ramarajan.
How FSL employees got involved
According to the police, Suma and Dombar did not expect that Sandeep’s body would be shifted to a government hospital for the post-mortem and that the police would carry out FSL tests. Suma allegedly confessed to the crime before her mother, a health worker.
According to the police, she contacted Dr Basavaraj Bhasme, seeking help to cover up the crime. Dr Bhasme sought around Rs 3 lakh and shared the amount with FSL Senior Scientific Officer P M Nagaraj, FSL Lab Assistant Channappa Adaviswamimath, FSL Clerk Appasab Naikwadi, and Ashok Gujanal, the police commissioner’s office assistant, to forge the FSL report, the police said. A forged FSL report was sent to the district police.
Conflict over cash
The initial plan was that Suma and Dombar would live together after Sandeep’s death, the police officer said. “But after getting the insurance money, Suma started avoiding Dombar. This angered him. It was then that he uploaded the post on social media,” the officer added.
The police exhumed Sandeep’s body and another post-mortem was conducted.
On Monday, the police announced the arrests of Suma, Dombar, Dombar’s friend Sachin Selar, Dr Bhasme, FSL officials Nagaraj, Adaviswamimath, and Naikwadi, Gujanal, and hospital employee Rahul Jogi.
According to the Belagavi police, Sandeep Manjaragi (left) was murdered following a conspiracy hatched by his wife, Suma (centre), and his friend, Pundalik Dombar (right). 
Share
