MANGALORE, Jun 28 (The Hindu): The Mangalore East police have applied to the Second Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate for reopening a case involving the death, under “mysterious circumstances”, of a city-based doctor M. Gurudath Krishnarao.
Dr. Krishnarao is suspected to have died in August or September 2005 when he was around 64. The case was closed by the Kadri police on November 30, 2008, citing “insufficient evidence”.
Superintendent of Police A.S. Rao told The Hindu that the application to the court was sent based on the recommendations of an inquiry team constituted by him that was headed by a senior officer of the district police. The officer in-charge of the inquiry, who did not wish to be quoted, said there were several contradictions in the case that was “wilfully mishandled” by the previous investigating authorities.
Based on the documents procured by The Hindu under the Right to Information Act, the following facts emerged:
Two death certificates
The exact date and cause of Dr. Krishnarao’s death is still a mystery. The police have found two death certificates registered by the Mangalore City Corporation; one dated August 1, 2005 and the other dated September 8, 2005. The first document claims that a relative of the deceased Dinakar Manjeshwar had applied for the document.
However, Dinakar Manjeshwar told the police that he did not apply for the death certificate and his handwriting did not match with the application for the death certificate.
The second death certificate was applied for by Mohan Bolangadi who is an accused in the case.
The cause of death in the first certificate is “general weakness” and the second one says that Dr. Krishnarao died of malaria.
Dr. Krishnarao lived alone in his house which was built on a 67.52 cent-plot along the Arya Samaj Main Road in the Balmatta area of the city.
According to present market rates, the property could be worth over Rs 13 crore.
According to the case records, in early 2004 Dr. Krishnarao befriended Prakash Pandeshwar (the main accused in the case) who ran a charitable institution that helped people in their old age.
Later, the doctor conferred the General Power of Attorney of his property on an associate of Pandeshwar named Jagdeesh Maroli (the second accused in the case). Maroli sold the property to Pandeshwar on May 8, 2004 for Rs 12.15 Lakh.
The officer in-charge of the inquiry conceded that there was pressure to thwart the case from political and real estate lobbies.
The officer has been transferred out of the district.