MARGAO: The Maina-Curtorim Police registered a case of murder in connection with the death of Kanhaiya Kumar Mondal, a 32-year-old labourer from Bihar, whose body was found on the road in Loutolim.
The post-mortem report revealed that the deceased had four stab injuries on the abdomen and one on the neck, raising the suspicion of murder. Initially believed to be a hit-and-run case, the injuries on Kanhaiya’s body have left police puzzled about the events leading up to his death. Key questions include how he ended up in Loutolim after being questioned by the Ponda police, who dropped him off, and where exactly this occurred. Maina- Curtorim Police are set to record statements from three suspended Ponda police officers to uncover the truth.
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“A case of murder under Section 302 of the IPC has been registered as the murder was reported prior to the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) which came into effect on July 1, and the investigation is ongoing. All necessary evidence will be collected to get to the root of the case,” said South Goa SP Sunita Sawant.
Sections 279 and 304A of the IPC, initially filed for rash and negligent driving, also remain active, she added.
Sub Divisional Police Officer (SDPO) Santosh Dessai did not rule out the possibility of an assault and emphasised the need to determine if Kanhaiya Kumar had any enemies. “We are in the process of investigation and the culprit will be booked. We will find out whether the deceased had enmity with someone,” he added.
Director General of Police Jaspal Singh on Friday said that a truck from Karnataka, which may have been involved in the hit-and-run had been transported to Goa and that the forensic team will examine it to match injury marks found on Kanhaiya’s body. The body was handed over to his brother on Friday after all legal formalities were completed.
Sources said that the Belgaum-based truck driver detained by Maina-Curtorim police is still being interrogated.
On June 24, around 1.45 am, Maina-Curtorim Police discovered a body by the side of the road in Loutolim. Initial investigations led to a hit-and-run case being registered under Sections 279 and 304A of the IPC. However, Kanhaiya’s identity was confirmed only on June 29. The case was later reclassified as a murder.
Police reports revealed that Ponda police had detained Kanhaiya following a nuisance call on June 24. After questioning him for about an hour, he was dropped off near Borim Bridge, without proper protocol –his visit to the Ponda Police Station was not recorded in the police diary, though CCTV footage confirmed he was questioned by the police.
Three Ponda police officers were suspended following disciplinary proceedings related to Kanhaiya’s death – Head Constable Ravindra P Naik and Constables Ashwin V Sawant and Pritesh M Prabhu. All have been transferred to the Margao reserve line from Ponda Police Station.
A senior police officer involved in the investigation mentioned that Kanhaiya was not mentally fit and had no known enemies in Ponda, questioning the motive, if he was indeed murdered.
