Bengal worker murdered in Pune, Mamata Banerjee claims ‘hate crime’; two suspects detained

“I demand immediate arrests and exemplary punishment of the perpetrators. And to Sukhen’s family, I say that Bengal stands with you in this hour of unimaginable grief. No effort will be spared to secure justice,” she added.

However, Pune Rural police said their initial probe suggests Sukhen was killed over a dispute with local people. “We suspect he was beaten up as a result of this dispute and was fatally injured. We have registered a murder case. Two suspects have been identified,” Ramesh Chopde, Additional Superintendent of Police, Pune Rural, told The Indian Express.

According to Pune Rural police, Sukhen was found dead on the morning of February 10, on open land behind Hotel Aapla Ghar in Koregaon Bhima in Shirur taluka of Pune district.

After receiving information, a police team rushed to the spot and took Sukhen’s body to a hospital for a postmortem examination, which revealed he died due to a severe head injury.

Subsequently, they lodged an offence of murder against unidentified persons at Shikrapur Police Station. Sukhen’s brother Tulsiram Dhiren Mahato lodged the First Information Report (FIR), as per section 103 (1) (murder) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).

According to the FIR, Tulsiram lives at Dnyaneshwar Complex in Koregaon Bhima and works at JAL Precision Products Limited in Sanaswadi.

Mahesh Dongare, Sub-Inspector at Shikrapur police station and the investigating officer, said Sukhen had lived in Koregaon Bhima with two of his brothers for the last few years.

“Sukhen was also working at JAL Precision Products Limited Company. A probe so far has revealed that he was murdered on the intervening night of February 9 and February 10. We have detained two youngsters. Prima-facie it is suspected that they had some petty quarrel with the deceased. But, a probe is on to confirm the motive behind the murder,” said Dongare.

The police said that while there are CCTV cameras where the murder took place, they checked videos of the surrounding locations and other spots to gather clues about the assailants in this case. Police said they were also trying to determine the age of one of the suspects, who appears to be a teenager.

They said Sukhen’s body was handed over to his brothers after the postmortem examination, who left for their village for the last rites.