Bihar man travels 2,000 km to kill father in ‘Drishyam’-style plot; one phone call exposes him

A 26-year-old man allegedly travelled nearly 2,000 km from Surat to his village in Bihar’s Samastipur district, killed his sleeping father with an axe and headed back to Gujarat after attempting to erase his digital trail, in a plot police say was inspired by the Bollywood thriller Drishyam. His elaborate attempt to conceal the journey, however, was undone by a brief phone call to his wife.

Police identified the accused as Shiv Shankar and the victim as his 50-year-old father, Raghuveer Sahni. The killing took place late on July 26 at Darwa village in Samastipur, where Raghuveer was sleeping outside his house when he was allegedly attacked repeatedly with an axe.

Strained relationship

Investigators said Shiv Shankar lived and worked in Surat with his wife and had a strained relationship with his father. Police said the two had repeatedly quarrelled over the proposed sale of family land, while Shiv Shankar also alleged that his father had mistreated him and his wife.

According to police, Shiv Shankar told investigators after his arrest that he had watched Drishyam while in Surat and drew inspiration from its central premise of manipulating a timeline and creating an alibi to mislead investigators. The claim about the film’s influence is based on the police account of his questioning.

Phone switched off

Police said Shiv Shankar switched off his mobile phone before beginning his journey from Surat, apparently believing that the absence of location data would make it appear that he had remained in Gujarat. He travelled to Patna and then Hajipur before boarding a train to Patori in Samastipur district.

After reaching Patori in the evening, he allegedly took an autorickshaw to Jorpura and then walked around 4 km to his village. Police said he reached his house around midnight and entered through the rear door, further reducing the possibility of being noticed by neighbours or other villagers.

Axe picked up at home

Instead of carrying a weapon from Surat, Shiv Shankar allegedly picked up an axe kept inside the family home. Police said he then approached his father, who was sleeping near the entrance, and struck him several times on the head.

Raghuveer died from his injuries. Shiv Shankar allegedly left the axe behind and immediately began making his way back towards Patori railway station, intending to return to Surat without leaving an obvious trail connecting him to Samastipur on the night of the murder.

One call changes case

It was at Patori station that the plan allegedly began to unravel. After keeping his phone switched off throughout his journey, Shiv Shankar briefly turned it on and called his wife before switching it off again, Patori DSP BK Meghavi said.

That brief connection provided investigators with a crucial digital footprint. Technical surveillance subsequently showed his mobile phone around Patori station on the day of the murder and then placed it in Surat around 36 hours later. Police also examined the call records and detected his conversation with his wife while the handset was active at Patori.

Absence raises suspicion

Another factor that drew investigators towards Shiv Shankar was his absence following his father’s death. Police said he did not return for his father’s funeral rites, adding to their suspicion even though he was ostensibly living nearly 2,000 km away in Surat.

A forensic team examined the crime scene and the body was sent for post-mortem examination. Police said forensic examination suggested that the attacker was likely someone known to the victim, helping investigators narrow the circle of suspicion.

Tracked to Surat

Once investigators reconstructed Shiv Shankar’s movements using mobile-location data and call records, police traced him to Surat and arrested him in connection with the killing. During questioning, police said, he allegedly admitted planning the murder after watching Drishyam. He was subsequently sent to jail.

The case ultimately turned on the very digital trail the accused had allegedly tried to eliminate. Despite keeping his phone switched off during most of the nearly 2,000-km journey, the short call from Patori station gave investigators a location and timeline that helped connect his journey from Surat to the killing in Samastipur and his return to Gujarat.