Didn’t kill my mom, Mumbai cop’s son tells court
Mumbai city news: The police, however, said they have enough forensic and circumstantial evidence to get Siddhant Ganore, 21, convicted
In an unexpected twist, Siddhant Ganore, 21, the son of a city police inspector, who was arrested for murdering his mother Dipali, 42, in May, pleaded not guilty before a magistrate appointed to record his confession last week. This after the police claimed Siddhant had promised to confess to the crime before the court.
The police, however, said they have enough forensic and circumstantial evidence to get Siddhant convicted. The 21-year-old allegedly murdered his mother in their Santacruz (East) flat after an argument and scribbled a bloody message next to the body that read, “Tired of her. Catch me and hang me.” The note ended with a smiley.
On June 2, the Vakola police had informed the Bandra magistrate court they do not want Siddhant’s custody for two reasons — one he had promised to confess before a magistrate and any pending investigation into the case did not require him to be in custody.
The police last week made arrangements for his confession and the court appointed a special magistrate to record it.
Siddhant was brought to the court from Arthur Road jail, where he is lodged. He, however, told the magistrate he does not want to confess and he is not guilty. His judicial custody has been extended.
A police source said, “He must have been tutored by some relative or he must have been given advice by other inmates in jail. We did not push for his psychological profiling because it would have given him an advantage. However, we were not relying on his confession. We have ample circumstantial and forensic evidence apart from witnesses to get him convicted. He stabbed his mother 12 times, which show his intentions.”
The forensic evidence such as fingerprints on the blood-stained knife, his blood-stained clothes collected from the bathroom and the note on the floor were enough, said an officer. The police are also banking on CCTV footage and other circumstantial evidence.
Dipali was murdered on the afternoon of May 23. Siddhant’s father Dyaneshwar, an inspector at the Khar police station, found his wife’s body around midnight.
Police said Siddhant had left his phone at home and had taken a local train from Santacruz railway station. He kept changing trains and managed to reach Jodhpur in Rajasthan via Surat, without a valid ticket, police said.
On June 1, Siddhant was tracked based on technical evidence and the local police in Jodhpur, acting on a tip-off from the Mumbai Police, caught him in a local hotel. He confessed before them and again while in Vakola police’s custody about brutally murdering his mother.
Siddhant allegedly told the police his mother was highly educated and pressured him to study. He had become weak in studies and his mother often admonished him over his academic performance, police claimed.
Siddhant had also allegedly told the police he was fed up of the constant fights between his parents.
Siddhant had also failed his First Year BSC exams and his mother was constantly asking him for the results. On the fateful day, a heated argument took place over the result after which he murdered his mother, police said.