A 70-year-old retired Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer, Rakesh Agarwal, was found murdered at his residence in Bhopal’s Surajnagar area on Wednesday morning, with police launching a search for a newly-hired caretaker who disappeared after the incident.
Agarwal suffered a fatal injury to his neck from a sharp-edged weapon. Police have identified his newly-hired caretaker, Varun Kumar, as the prime suspect in the case.
Kumar had been hired through a Punjab-based placement agency just two days before the incident, on September 28, according to Additional Commissioner of Police Shailendra Chauhan. He has been missing since the murder and his belongings were also not found at the house.
Wife discovers body after main door found locked
The murder came to light early on Wednesday after Agarwal’s wife woke up at around 5.30am and prepared to leave for her morning walk. She found that the main door had been locked from the outside.
She then contacted another domestic worker, Rajan Thapa, before going to Agarwal’s room, where she found him lying dead on the floor. She immediately alerted the police.
The house falls under the Ratibad police station area. Senior police officers, including Bhopal Police Commissioner Sanjay Kumar, reached the scene, while a Forensic Science Laboratory team was deployed to collect evidence. Investigators are also examining CCTV footage and questioning people in the vicinity as they try to reconstruct the sequence of events.
Police examine suspected attempt to destroy evidence
Investigators found signs that there may have been an attempt to set the house on fire after the killing. The LPG cylinder pipe in the kitchen had been disconnected and gas had accumulated inside the premises when police arrived.
Other reports said investigators found indications that more than one LPG connection may have been opened, prompting suspicion that the house was intended to catch fire or explode after the murder. Police are examining whether this was an attempt to destroy evidence.
The motive for the killing has not yet been conclusively established. Police are examining different possibilities, including robbery, after finding several almirahs inside the house open.
Search on for caretaker hired two days before murder
Police teams have been deployed to trace Kumar, who remains unaccounted for after the incident. Authorities are also contacting the Punjab-based placement agency through which he was hired.
Investigators are checking CCTV footage from the area and gathering forensic evidence from the residence as part of efforts to establish Kumar’s movements and determine what happened inside the house.
Police have so far described Kumar as the prime suspect, but the investigation is still underway and the motive remains under examination.