A man has been arrested in Jharkhand's Dhanbad district for hiring assassins to murder his father to get the latter's government job on compassionate grounds, police said.
The two persons he had hired to murder his father, who was an employee of coal PSU Bharat Coking Coal Limited (BCCL), were also nabbed.
Dhanbad Rural Superintendent of Police S Mohammed Yakub told reporters on Thursday night that the deceased Tuleshwar Nonia's son Vijay Chauhan, along with two hired killers Amit Singh and Akhilesh Mallah, has been arrested in connection with the murder that took place on the night of June 19.
"Nonia was a coal worker in a BCCL colliery in Barora. He had only two years of service left at BCCL. His son Vijay Chauhan wanted to secure a permanent job at the colliery on compassionate grounds following his father's death and conspired to eliminate his father," Yakub said.
"He (Vijay) planned the murder along with his two accomplices Mallah and Singh, both residents of Badaura Colony in Barora police station area," Yakub added.
Police claimed Chauhan had offered Rs 10 lakh to his accomplices to murder his father, although no advance payment was made prior to the murder.
Investigation revealed that Chauhan had planned an alibi to avoid suspicion. He told his father he would attend a relative's wedding in Bihar's Aurangabad and left home on Friday morning.
"Meanwhile, in accordance with the plan, Singh and Mallah offered a lift to Nonia on their motorcycle after his shift ended on Friday night and took him to a secluded spot, where they bludgeoned him to death with a big stone," the police officer said.
With the intent to destroy evidence and conceal his identity, they smashed his face. Subsequently, to make the incident appear like a road accident, they dragged the body and dumped it on the main road, he said.
"CCTV footage from the BCCL system at the AMP Colliery clearly showed Nonia riding on the same motorcycle with Singh and Mallah. Acting on this lead, the police detained both men and subjected them to rigorous interrogation, eventually uncovering the full truth," the officer said.
According to police records, Mallah has a history of criminal activity and he had previously been jailed in connection with coal and diesel theft cases registered at the Madhuban police station.
(With inputs from PTI)