Child, grand parents murdered

KOLHAPUR, Sept 30: In a nerve-shattering incident, a four-year-old and her grand parents were found stabbed and strangled at their reside...

KOLHAPUR, Sept 30: In a nerve-shattering incident, a four-year-old and her grand parents were found stabbed and strangled at their residence in the vicinity of the busy Dabholkar Corner here.

The police suspect the involvement of two waiters working with a tea stall run by the son of the old couple, although no clear clue to the motive behind the crime could be found by the invesigators from the scene of the assault till late in the evening. The crime, that left the city shell-shocked, took place sometime between 6.45 a.m. and 12 noon, preliminary investigation has showed.

Fiftyeight-year-old Rambhau Jayram Divate, his wife Anasuya and granddaughter Ankita Badve were found murdered at their Vijay Mansion residence when Divate8217;s son Ramesh returned home from his tea stall near the Central Bus Stand around 12 noon, the police said.Rambhau was assaulted with a sharp weapon in the bedroom in his single-story house. Aausuya was strangled with a nylon string in the kitchen. Blood stains were found on the walls of the bed-room while a bunch of currency notes and other things were found near his bed.

Anasuya was lying in a pool of blood in the kitchen. The killers had gagged her using her padar. The kitchen scene suggested that Anusuya offered a stiff resistance to the assaulters, the police said.

Ankita was strangled in the bed. She had come to stay with her grand parents, possibly because of the long weekend. Her father Anil owns a powerloom unit at Ichalkaranji.

The Divates were staying with their son Ramesh after they lost their elder son Nandkumar in a road accident four years ago. Incidentally, today was his death anniversary. Divate8217;s younger son Umesh had passed away about one-and-a-half years back.Even as the police suspect theft as the motive, they are probing certain enmities involving a labour problem at Divate8217;s tea stall. Two waiters at the stall, of which one was later identified as Shriniwas, were found to be missing, Shahupuri police said.

Senior police officials including SP Madhav Sanap, deputy superintendent of police P. Budhwant and PI in charge of Shahupuri police station Narendra Waghmale rushed to the spot. The police dog which was summoned did not lead the investigators anywhere. Another trained dog belonging to control room PI L.N. Shinde led the police to the Mahadev temple junction near the ST terminus, the police said.