Bengaluru: Bhaskar Shetty (52), the multi-millionaire hotelier from Udupi, who was allegedly murdered in cold blood by his wife Rajeshwari (45), son Navaneeth (20) and astrologer Niranjan Bhat Asranna (25) at his residence in Indrali in Udupi on July 28, had reportedly written a will in which he had bequeathed his property to his relatives but had left out Rajeshwari and Navneeth because of their estranged relationship with him, said an official source.
“Bhaskar had written a will and was about to get it registered to make it a legal document when Rajeshwari and Navaneeth came to know of it and eliminated him with the help of astrologer and the woman’s friend Niranjan Bhatt because they knew that they would not be able to contest the will once it was registered.
There was no love lost among the three of them. Bhaskar had on occasions questioned Rajeshwari regarding her proximity with Niranjan and had started living in his hotel – Durga International – because of constant fights at home. The mother and son also accused Bhaskar of indulging in extramarital affairs,” the officer said.
Bhaskar, according to official sources, used to come home every morning to take bath and offer prayers. “The accused, who knew the time he would come home, planned his murder with Niranjan’s help. Bhaskar was a well-built man and the accused initially used a pepper spray to disorient him. Later they hit him with a rod and poured poison in his mouth. They later took the body to Niranjan’s house in Nandalike, where they burnt it in a yagna khund. The police had recovered the rod from the crime scene,” the officer said.
Describing the modus operandi, the officer said that after they burnt Bhaskar’s body in the homa khund, Niranjan informed his father Srinivas Bhatt and a common friend Raghavendra. “They dressed the crime scene and dug up the khund. Later, they disposed off the remains of the crime in gunny sacks in three nearby rivulets,” said the officer.
Bhaskar’s murder has a strong resemblance with the infamous Sheena Bora murder case in Maharashtra and is being investigated by the Criminal Investigation Department.
