Mid-Day

Mumbai, Jun 9: The decomposed body of a senior citizen, Rishikumkar Srivastava (75), was recovered from a drain in Thane (W) in the early hours on Thursday, two days after he was murdered.

Rishikumar Srivastava

Srivastava, was a scriptwriter for teleserials like Aurat, aired on Doordarshan.

Neeraj Kushwala, a 20-year-old servant who worked in the chemical factory, K Tech (India) Pvt Ltd,  where the victim was a caretaker, is the suspect, while a man called Shekhar (21) is alleged to be his accomplice. One of the two suspects faltered in giving his version of the day’s events, which led to the case being solved.

Said the company’s managing director, SC Srivastava, “The victim went missing on June 6, from the factory.

Kushwala, who used to accompany Srivastava on work, told us that Srivastava had asked his regular dabbawala not to get him his dinner that day, since he was unwell.

He added that he got Srivastava vada pav instead. This raised our suspicion. If Srivastava was unwell and refused food earlier, why would he ask for vada pav later?”

Naupada PI JN Jadhare informed, “The two suspects got together and tied him up before strangling him with a water pipe. His body was packed in a plastic gunny bag and then dumped in a drain at the factory’s backyard. The motive of the crime is yet unclear.”