Trivial Bidi Dispute Leads to Murder: Raipur Police Solve Blind Murder Case with Three Arrests

The accused individuals captured in the image disposed of Sonu Pal's body in a drainage canal near Goda Pul.

Bhopal:

Police have successfully resolved a 'blind murder' case in Amner village located in Raipur's Abhanpur area. Three individuals were apprehended on Thursday for the murder of 26-year-old Sonu Pal, whose remains were discovered floating in a drainage canal near Goda Pul earlier in the week.

The three suspects - Sumit Bande (26), Ajay Ratre (24), and Gulshan Gaikwad (26) - admitted to the crime during police questioning.

The victim sustained severe injuries to his head and face. Law enforcement officials stated that the incident was initially classified as a 'blind murder' when reported on Friday. Local residents discovered a male body in the drainage canal displaying serious head and facial trauma.

The deceased showed evidence of violent assault with a blunt object. Police registered a case under Sections 103 and 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and commenced their investigation.

Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Dr. Lal Umed Singh assembled a specialized team led by Additional SP (Nava Raipur) Vivek Shukla, Additional SP (Crime) Sandeep Mittal, and DSP Sanjay Singh to solve the case.

The investigative team began by establishing the victim's identity, collecting CCTV recordings, and interviewing residents in the vicinity. Through technical analysis and field inquiries, they identified the victim as Sonu Pal, son of Mahesh Pal from Gatapara village in Abhanpur.

As investigators reconstructed Pal's final hours, they discovered he had been consuming alcohol outside a liquor establishment in Abhanpur the evening before his death. According to police, it was at this location that a seemingly minor altercation escalated with fatal consequences.

Pal was killed by Bande, Ratre, and Gaikwad following a dispute over a bidi on Thursday.

A senior police officer involved in the investigation told NDTV, "The accused and the victim were consuming alcohol separately. Sonu Pal requested a bidi from the accused. When they refused, an argument ensued. Subsequently, they lured him by offering drugs and took him to the drainage canal near Goda Pul."

According to the officer, the three allegedly attacked Pal with their fists and a metallic bracelet before crushing his head with a stone and disposing of his body in the drainage canal.

SSP Dr. Lal Umed Singh confirmed that Bande, Ratre, and Gaikwad were arrested and charged with murder.

"The dispute was remarkably trivial - a disagreement over a bidi - yet it culminated in calculated violence," added SSP Singh.

Police described the incident as a disturbing example of how minor disagreements can escalate into senseless killings. The investigation revealed no previous hostility between the accused and the victim.