With the arrest of seven persons including four 'sharp-shooters' from Uttar Pradesh, Thane police today claimed to have foiled a conspiracy to murder a BJP leader from Kalyan in the district.
City police commissioner Param Bir Singh, who recently took charge here, said at a press conference this afternoon that the accused were produced before a holiday court on Sunday which remanded them in police custody till July 9.
They killers were to receive a whopping Rs one crore for eliminating BJP leader and builder Mahesh Patil, who is sarpanch of village Sagarli.
The accused were identified as Kunal Patil, a Dombivali-based builder, Suraj Irfan Khan, Rakesh Shantaram Kadam who is a building material supplier, Mohamad Afzal Mohamad Abdul Wahab, Mohamad Nayeem Mistry Mohamad Amin, Mohamad Salim Mohamad Ismail Hashmi, and Atul Devendra Singh.
Kunal Patil is a member of NCP. The last four were from Jaunpur, Baksa and Azamgadh districts of Uttar Pradesh, police said.
All of them were arrested from Maharashtra Lodge near the Kalyan railway station in the early hours yesterday. Police also recovered four loaded pistols and 21 live cartridges.
Singh said that in 2006 Kunal Patil and others allegedly killed Mahesh Patil's friend Rohidas Bhoir; in retaliation, Kunal Patil's cousin Vijay Patil was shot dead and Mahesh Patil had been arrested in that case.
This previous enmity might have led to the present plot, police suspect. Further probe is on.
