Madhya Pradesh: ‘Accidental death during selfie’ turns out to be double murder; accused arrested

The accused, who had allegedly killed the men in a bid to keep his theft a secret, was arrested on Tuesday, police said

Updated on: Oct 21, 2020, 10:02:06 IST

Hindustan Times, Bhopal | By Shruti Tomar

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An accident, where two young men were reported to have lost their lives while taking a selfie in Madhya Pradesh’s (MP) Barwani district, located around 313 kilometres (km) south-west of Bhopal, on August 31, has turned out to be a case of double murder, said the police.

The accused, who had allegedly killed the men in a bid to keep his theft a secret, was arrested on Tuesday, police said.

Shantilal, a contractor, who belonged to MP’s Dhar district, has been accused of the youths’ murder, police said.

The arrested accused, who claimed to be the sole eye-witness of the alleged accident, had informed the police of the deaths on August 31, said Nimish Agarwal, superintendent of police (SP), Barwani.

Also read: Police arrest 3 for kidnapping and murder of Jabalpur transporter’s son, one dies

The deceased were identified as Dinesh Barela (25) and Bunty Barela (22), who belonged to Dahi village in Dhar district.

Their bodies were found at Ramgarh in Barwani district on September 1, the police said.

“Shantilal said that the two men had slipped and fallen in a gorge, while taking a selfie on August 1. Their bodies were found on September 1. Though Shantilal was questioned several times about the alleged accident, he stuck to the accident theory. However, there were certain discrepancies in his statement,” the SP said,

“Shantilal was again detained on Monday and he confessed to his crime the following day,” he said.

“Shantilal said that he was working at a construction site with Dinesh and Bunty. He had stolen 200 sacks of cement from the site a few months ago and handed over the building material to the duo. He had demanded Rs 40,000 from Dinesh and Bunty as his share, but the men refused to part with the cash and started blackmailing him. This led to their murder,” the SP said.

Shantilal has allegedly confessed to the police that he took the men to Ramgarh, a scenic spot in Barwani, and pushed them to a gorge and made it look like an accident.

The arrested accused has been booked under section 302 (murder) and other relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), the SP added.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Shruti Tomar
I have spent over a decade chronicling Madhya Pradesh’s political and social landscape, covering politics, investigative journalism, crime, human interest, and government policy, blending sharp insight with ground‑level depth. I have closely tracked three assembly elections, three Lok Sabha elections, leadership transitions in MP while exposing governance lapses, tender irregularities, and flawed policy rollouts. My reports have revealed gaps in the Cheetah project, irregularities in medical education, rigging in recruitment exams, and loopholes in policy implementation. In crime reporting, I have moved beyond FIRs to map systemic patterns — from organised crime networks and gender‑based violence to custodial accountability — balancing urgency with sensitivity. My journalism is defined by a commitment to human interest. I have profiled the marginalised Bancchda community, documented atrocities against tribal groups, and highlighted efforts to preserve their culture through heritage liquor and revival of spiritual practices. I have reported on farmers struggling with failed MSP promises, giving voice to those often reduced to statistics in policy files. Passionate about field reporting, I have reported on rampant sand mining in Chambal and Narmada, pharmaceutical companies supplying medicines under altered names, the dire condition of schools and colleges, the plight of commercial sex workers, and skewed sex ratios in specific districts. Beyond deadlines, and as HT’s state correspondent and assistant editor in Madhya Pradesh, I engage with ministers, farmers, students, and activists, believing the best policy stories begin with a single human voice. A postgraduate in Journalism and Mass Communication, I also hold a diploma in sports journalism.Read More

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