By IANS,
Mumbai: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has summoned forensic and ballistic experts to help probe the murder of Congress leader Pavan Raje Nimbalkar allegedly by his cousin and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) MP Padamsinh Patil, an official said here Thursday.
The team will assist the CBI probe the murder, which has created a political storm in Maharashtra and led to Patil’s suspension from the NCP.
The experts will examine the evidence collected so far by the Navi Mumbai police and also attempt to trace the antecedents of the green Tata Indica car used by the killers to commit the crime and escape, the official said Thursday evening.
On July 3, 2006, the killers came in the vehicle, shot Nimbalkar and his driver Samad Qazi, at Kalamboli (near Panvel) in Navi Mumbai, sped off and hid the car in a nearby village. Nimbalkar was lured there on the pretext of striking a business deal.
The vehicle was later set on fire, but the investigators managed to extract the chassis number from the burnt debris. The CBI will now trace out the vehicle owner through the chassis number.
After his arrest by the CBI last Sunday, a court in Panvel, around 100 km from Mumbai, remanded Patil to custody till June 14.
Patil has been charged with the murder and conspiracy to kill Nimbalkar and slapped with Indian Penal Code Sec. 302 and Sec. 120-B, dealing with murder and conspiracy to murder, respectively.
Underworld sharp-shooter Dineshram M. Tiwari (37) and his supervisor Parasmal T. Jain (47), were arrested by the CBI May 25 in connection with the case.
In their confessional recorded before a magistrate, the duo also made the sensational disclosure of receiving a Rs.2.50 milion contract to eliminate renowned social and anti-corruption crusader, Anna Hazare, a Magsaysay Award winner.
The contract to kill Nimbalkar and Hazare was given by two businessmen Mohan Shukla and Satish Mandade, who have also been arrested by the CBI and are in custody.