Police said the arrested defendants have been sent to jail (Representational)
Balrampur:
Three people have been arrested in connection with the murder of a 35-year-old journalist and his friend, police said Monday.
Lalit Mishra, Keshvan and Mishra aka Rinku and Akram Ali were arrested for the murder of journalist Rakesh Singh and his friend Pintu Sahu from a jungle near the Bahadurpur crossing, said Balrampur Police Superintendent Devranjan Verma.
The trio have confessed to their crime, he added.
Verma said that Keshvanand’s mother was a village head and Rakesh Singh had exposed the diversion of funds under her.
The defendant holds a grudge against the victim for this. They went to his house under the pretext of some talks. They made Rakesh Singh and his friends consume alcohol and then committed the crime, the SP said.
He also said that an alcohol-based disinfectant was used to burn down the house so that the murder could appear to be an accident.
“To burn the house with the chemical, Lalit Mishra and Keshvanand Mishra enlisted the help of Akram Ali, alias Abdul Qadir, who is an expert in executing incidents like these,” the police officer said.
Rakesh Singh, 35, who worked for a local newspaper, and his friend Pintu Sahu, 32, were badly burned in the house fire in Kalwari village.
While Mr. Sahu died on the spot, Rakesh Singh suffered 90 percent burns and was referred to a Lucknow hospital where he died of the injuries, the SP had previously said.
The journalist’s father, Munna Singh, had demanded an investigation for suspecting that his son was murdered.
According to the police, Rakesh Singh’s wife and children had gone to a relative’s home two days before the incident after a dispute between the couple. On Friday night, there was an explosion in the house after which one of the walls collapsed and one of the rooms caught fire, police said.
The Balrampur district administration on Sunday evening delivered a check for Rs 5 lakh to the journalist’s wife. In a statement, police said the check was delivered to the victim’s family by Legislator Palturam.
Balrampur Chini Mills management has assured the district administration that they will employ Vibha Singh, the victim’s wife.
The administration had said it will also ensure that the victim’s daughters receive free education.
The family will have 24-hour security by the police, and four teams have been formed to solve the case of the journalist’s murder, police said Sunday.
Earlier, the journalist’s wife had threatened to set herself on fire if the police did not arrest the accused. Police said the arrested defendants have been sent to jail.
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