- By Nidhi Giri
- Mon, 06 Jan 2025 09:56 AM (IST)
- Source:JND
Chhattisgarh Journalist Murder: The main accused in the murder of journalist Mukesh Chandrakar, was arrested by a Special Investigation Team (SIT) during a late-night operation in Hyderabad on Monday. With the arrest of Suresh Chandrakar, the total number of arrests in the murder case rose to four as the Chhattisgarh Police on Saturday arrested three individuals in connection with the murder. Mukesh Chandrakar, who went missing on New Year’s Day was later found dead in a septic tank at a road contractor’s premises in Bijapur district.
Mukesh, known for his bold investigative reporting, had recently exposed alleged corruption in a Rs 120 crore road construction project spanning from Gangalur to Hiroli in the Bastar region.
Police suspect that individuals affected by his reporting might be involved in his murder. The project, worth of which went from Rs 50 crore to Rs 120 crore without any changes to the effect of the work’s scope, was reportedly being handled by contractor Suresh Chandrakar, who has now been arrested from Hyderabad.
Earlier, his own cousin Ritesh Chandrakar was arrested along with two others in Mukesh Chandrakar’s murder case. Ritesh, who is the brother of Suresh Chandrakar, allegedly arranged a meeting of the contractor with Mukesh on the night of January 1.
Following the meeting, Mukesh’s phone went offline, and he was reported missing by his elder brother, Yukesh Chandrakar, who filed a complaint, prompting the police to initiate a search in which authorities reviewed CCTV footage and identified his last known location.
The journalist’s body was discovered two days later in a septic tank on a property owned by Suresh in Chattanpara, where he was last seen.
Police arrested three suspects, including Ritesh, and another family member, Dinesh Chandrakar. However, Suresh Chandrakar, the contractor at the centre of the corruption
scandal, remained absconding.
A Special Investigation Team (SIT) was constituted to probe Mukesh Chandrakar’s death and to arrest the fourth accused Suresh. Police have also seized three bank accounts of contractor Suresh, according to reports.