Thrissur: The special investigation team probing the murder of a real estate broker at Pariyaram in Chalakudy on Friday will investigate the involvement of High Court criminal lawyer C.P. Udayabhanu in the crime.
The body of Veeramparambil Rajeev, 43, of Nayathode, Angamaly, was recovered from an abandoned building at Pariyaram.
He was a broker of two land deals for Mr C.P. Udayabhanu and there were issues between them over the advance paid by Mr Udayabhanu and the brokerage fee collected by the victim.
Rajeev and the main suspect, Cherumadam Johny, were earlier business partners. After they spilt, Johny had alleged that Rajeev owed him a hefty sum.
Lawyer denies role in murder
According to Rural SP Yathish Chandra, Rajeev was kidnapped on Friday morning by six persons and strangled at an abandoned building of a convent called ‘Sisters of Destitute’ at Pariyaram a few hours later.
“Four of the accused were detained and they will be presented for an identification parade. We are on the lookout for the two others and the case will be probed by the SIT led by Special Branch DySP
Mr Udayabhanu denied the allegations and said they were baseless and fabricated. “I had issues with the parties in the agreement, not with the real estate broker. I had complained that Rajeev had taken an excess of '11.5 lakh from me over the deal and the court had issued an order on the issue in June,” he said.
He doubted that there was a conspiracy against him and denied that he had made a call to the police informing them about Rajeev lying unconscious in the abandoned building on Friday morning.
According to Rural SP Yathish Chandra, Rajeev was kidnapped on Friday morning by six persons and strangled at an abandoned building of a convent called ‘Sisters of Destitute’ at Pariyaram a few hours later.
“Four of the accused were detained and they will be presented for an identification parade. We are on the lookout for the two others and the case will be probed by the SIT led by Special Branch DySP (rural) S. Shamsudheen. DCRB DySP S. Aminnikkuttan and Puthukad CI S.P. Sudheeran will assist him,” Mr Chandra said on Saturday.
All those who had money deals with the victim would be questioned, he said. Johny and another person are yet to be taken into custody.
Allegations against the lawyer
Mr I.P. Mathew, a lawyer close to the victim, said that Mr Udayabhanu had reached a deal with Rajeev to buy two properties worth '4 to 5 crore and paid him an advance of '50 lakh and 20 lakh separately.
But as Mr Udayabhanu could not raise the total amount, he demanded the return of the advance.
“Rajeev had filed a petition in the High Court in June citing threat from Udayabhanu and Johny through lawyer I.P. Davis, who is my brother,” Mr Mathew told DC. Rajeev had also complained to the DGP in June about the threat he faced from both Mr Udayabhanu and Mr Johny over the land deals, he said.
After Rajeev was abducted on Friday morning, Mr Mathew was with the search team of Chalakudy DySP Shahul Hameed. The DySP had said in his presence that both Udayabhanu and Johny had phoned him to say that Rajeev was lying inside a convent unconscious. “We searched three convents in the locality and the DySP then called the lawyer again to locate the abandoned building from where the body of Rajeev was found. By checking the call records, my claims can be verified. But the Rural SP has denied such calls made between the lawyer and the DySP,” Mr Mathew noted.
