Businessman Suresh Karwa murder case: Realtor, 3 others get life term

CHHATRAPATI SAMBHAJINAGAR: A sessions court in Parbhani convicted and sentenced a realtor and three others to rigorous life imprisonment for the murder of businessman Suresh Karwa at Selu in Parbhani district on May 2, 2021.
The court acquitted two other accused in the case that resulted from an illicit relationship between mastermind Rahul Kasat and the wife of the victim.
It was the police's case that Kasat was doggedly pursuing the victim's wife to continue with their affair after she discontinued their relationship. He conspired with the other accused to eliminate Suresh Karwa. The accused tried to pass off the incident as a death in a road accident, but an audio clip between Kasat and the victim's wife, secured by Selu police during the investigation, revealed the truth.
Deputy superintendent of police Rajendra Pal, who was investigating the case, and his subordinate constable were then arrested by the state anti-corruption bureau for demanding a Rs 2 crore bribe and accepting Rs 10 lakh token money from Kasat to conceal the audio clip that revealed it was not an accident but a planned murder. Incidentally, Kasat was the complainant in the ACB case.
Following the ACB trap, the case was handed over to then assistant superintendent of police Shravan Dath, who was posted as SDPO of Jintur division. His investigation revealed evidence suggesting the death of Suresh Karwa was not accidental, but a planned murder. During the investigation, Dath gathered initial evidence, including statements from witnesses and call detail reports. Statements from the deceased's family pointed to a conspiracy. Further statements and call detail analyses indicated a deliberate plot. As a result, IO Dath sought to add IPC sections for murder and criminal conspiracy against the accused.
Additional sessions judge Sandhya S Nair in her October 18 order, spanning about 400 pages, rejected public prosecutor D U Darade's plea seeking death sentence for Kasat and contract killer Vishal Ambhure while observing that the case did not fall within the ambit of the ‘rarest of rare case' as defined by the Supreme Court to merit capital punishment. The judge, however, sentenced the two, along with accused Vishal Patole and Rajebhau Khandgale, to rigorous life imprisonment and a fine of Rs 1 lakh each.
The court specifically appreciated investigation officer Dath, who is currently posted as Nadurbar district superintendent of police, for doing an outstanding job in collecting and connecting all the evidences during the investigation. It was because of his efforts that the crime was brought to light, the court said.
Considering the gravity of the case, the court conducted trial for 138 days. "The numerous improvements suggest that Seema's testimony was altered or added in an attempt to address gaps in the prosecution's case. Such changes indicate that the testimony may have been intentionally modified to strengthen the prosecution's narrative, raising concerns over its credibility and reliability," the court observed while raising serious questions against the first IO for not seizing the audio call recording just because he did not find it to be significant.