Kolkata, Jun 9 (IANS): The Kolkata Police have arrested three persons in connection with the murder of a Gujarati couple near the residence of West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.

Ashoke Shah (56) and his wife Rashmita Shah (52) were found murdered in their home, which is a km distance from the CM residence, on June 6.

City police commissioner Vineet Kumar Goyal told the mediapersons on Thursday that the three arrested were hired by a close relative of the slain couple.

The persons arrested have been identified as Subodh Kumar Singh, Jatin Mehta and Ratnakar Nath and all of them are residents of Liluah in Howrah district.

Of the three, Singh has prior criminal records.

"Ashoke Shah had lent some money to a close relative of his son-in-law. However, there was a recent dispute over that money as Shah was asking that close relative to return the borrowed money. So, we presume that the relative had been planning the murder for quite some time. That relative is currently absconding," he said.

The police commissioner also said that on the day of the murder that particular relative visited the residence of the slain couple. "The slain couple allowed him to enter and also offered drinking water. At that point of time heated discussions broke out between the two over the money lent. Precisely at the time, the assassins barged in and murdered the Shah couple," the city police commissioner said.

Ashoke Shah and his wife Rashmita Shah hailed from a Gujarati business family based out of Kolkata. The deceased couple's daughter had been trying to contact them over the phone on Monday morning. After getting no response, she reached the residence in the evening and found the main door open. On entering the house, she found the bodies of her parents in a pool of blood. There were multiple sharp weapon and bullet injuries on their bodies.