Daijiworld Media Network - Udupi (UM)
Udupi, Aug 6: It has now come to light that businessman Bhaskar Shetty, who has been missing since July 28, has been murdered, and his body burnt to ashes and thrown into a stream, allegedly by his wife and son.
File pic: Bhaskar Shetty with wife and son
Bhaskar Shetty, the owner of Hotel Durga International here, who also has businness in Saudi Arabia, had mysteriously gone missing on July 28. His family members, particularly his mother, had expressed suspicions that he might have been kidnapped by his wife Rajeshwari and son Navaneeth over financial matters.
The police took Rajeshwari and Navaneeth into custody, and during interrogation, Navaneeth is said to have admitted that he along with his mother murdered Bhaskar on July 28 and with the help of a priest named Niranjan Bhat, took the body to Nandalike in Karkala, where they conducted homa and burnt his body to ashes. Navaneeth reportedly told the police that he and his mother remained there till the body was half burnt, and then returned home.
However, it has come to light that after burning the body, the ashes and other materials like tiles used for the homa were packed in about 25 gunny bags and thrown into a stream at Nandalike. The police who followed a trail of clues have been able to recover 10 such sacks. They also visited the family at their residence on the night of Friday August 5.
It is said that while Bhaskar was running his business in Saudi, he had handed over the charge of Hotel Durga International to his wife. But on discovering that she had indulged in misappropriation of funds, he came back to his hometown and held discussions with his wife and son. During this time, an angry Rajeshwari allegedly tried to burn some documents, and when Bhaskar tried to stop her, he was allegedly assaulted by his son. Fearing for his life Bhaskar then began staying in his hotel, coming home only to refresh himself. On July 28, he went missing.
Meanwhile, search is on for priest Niranjan Bhat who has gone absconding.