Nagpur: Three goons, who were rounded up as a precautionary measure ahead of Ganeshotsav, were allegedly involved in the murder of a labourer whose body was found near a bar on Wardha Road on Monday.
The victim was identified as Shankar Kukde (36), who had been working as a daily wager in Nagpur for the last 15 years. Around the same time, Beltarodi police had picked up Sunny Gaikwad (23), Rohit Khujanare (23), and Tushar Khandare (23) from Kaikali Nagar slum as a part of a citywide drive to keep known offenders in check before Ganeshotsav.
During interrogation, Tushar told police he had been beaten by his two friends, Sunny and Rohit, near a bar on Wardha Road. Police said Sunny has several cases against him. Beltarodi police had initially registered an accidental death in the matter. Police were clueless about the identity of the victim and shifted the body to a mortuary. Police checked the CCTV cameras near the bar. The footage showed a drunken brawl in which the three men were assaulting Shankar. He later died of head injuries. Beltarodi police registered a murder case against Sunny, Rohit and Tushar. The trio has been arrested.
The identity was revealed on Tuesday when the victim’s brother approached police to lodge a missing person complaint.
Shankar’s brother Pramod (44), a labourer from Nandgaon in Hinganghat taluka of Wardha, reached the hospital, saw injuries on his head and suspected Shankar had been beaten before his death.