In Part-1 of Madhya Pradesh Crime Files, we told you about the shocking murder of a young businessman in Bhopal. On the night of November 11, 2013, during election duty, police received information that a half-burnt body of a young man was lying inside a ruin in the Barkheda Pathani area. The body had bullet injuries. During a search, police found Rs 5,000, a gold ring and a gas agency slip in his pocket. With the help of the slip, the deceased was identified as Manish Takhtani, son of Dilip Takhtani. He was a businessman. Police investigation revealed that Manish had left home in the morning to go to his shop but did not return at night. His car was later found abandoned in Kasturba Nagar. There were blood stains inside the car. His mobile phone was also recovered from the vehicle. Police suspected that the murder took place inside the car. After killing him, the accused allegedly took the body to the ruins and set it on fire to hide his identity. Staff working at Manish’s shop told police that he received a phone call around 4 pm. Soon after the call, he left the shop and never came back. As the probe moved forward, the name of Manish’s friend Harshpreet Saluja came up. During questioning, it was revealed that he was trying to get close to Manish’s wife, Sapna Takhtani. From here, the case took a dark and frightening turn. Now the big question before the police was, who was the last person Manish called? Did the friend conspire to kill him to get his wife? Or was the killer someone else? Read the rest of the story in Crime Files Part-2 Whose last call did Manish receive on the day of the incident? The biggest question before the police was who Manish’s last call was from on the day of the incident. Investigators felt that this call could be the most important clue in this murder case. In this direction, the police obtained the call details of Manish’s mobile number. The investigation of the call details revealed that Manish’s last call came from his friend Harshpreet Saluja’s number. However, based solely on call records, it could not be proven that Harshpreet had any direct involvement in the murder. Sapna had left home a month ago without informing anyone The police were preparing to interrogate Harshpreet when another shocking piece of information came to light during the investigation. It was revealed that the deceased Manish’s wife, Sapna, had left home without informing anyone about a month before the incident. At that time, Manish had also filed a missing person complaint for his wife. But after some time, Sapna returned home on her own. The police, considering it a domestic dispute, did not take the matter seriously and did not pursue the investigation further. After Manish’s murder, his wife’s sudden disappearance, his friend’s last call, and old domestic disputes – all these things forced the police to rethink. Now the investigation was being advanced from every angle. Sindhi community took to the streets in anger The anger of the traders was increasing as the killers remained untraced. The police picked up and interrogated several criminals from the area, but the murder was not solved. As a result, the Sindhi community came out on the streets in anger, demanding the arrest of Manish’s killers. Police officials assured a quick breakthrough and pacified the agitated people. After this, several police teams were formed and put to investigate the matter. During that time, Manish’s uncle pointed towards Harshpreet as the killer. The police already suspected Harshpreet, so he was called to the police station for questioning. After denial, Harshpreet confessed to the crime During questioning, Harshpreet initially kept denying Manish’s murder, but when the police interrogated him strictly, he started to break. The police asked Harshpreet why he had called Sapna twice and Manish on the day of the murder? He understood that his secret had been revealed. Finally, he was forced to narrate the entire story of the incident. The story of Manish’s murder that he recounted to the police turned out to be very shocking. Physical relationship with friend’s wife During interrogation, it was revealed that Manish’s wife Sapna and Harshpreet were having an affair. After the marriage, Harshpreet’s visits to their house increased. Over time, this relationship deepened to such an extent that Harshpreet and Sapna started planning to get married, but Manish was in their way. On the day of the murder, Harshpreet called Manish to Chetak Bridge on a pretext. He sat in the back seat of Manish’s car and started talking. During that time, Harsh fired the first shot at Manish’s head. After that, he came out and fired 2 more shots. Harshpreet tried to destroy evidence When Manish died, Harshpreet seated his body on the adjacent seat in such a way that he appeared to be a living person. This also happened; to avoid the heavy vehicle checking going on during the elections, he took the car, including Manish’s body, to Barkheda. After disposing of the body, he returned to Chetak Bridge. From the way, he called his servant Amin with water and washed the bloodstains. He had left the keys in the car with the hope that someone else would notice it and steal the car, thereby complicating the case. Sapna’s call details were surprising Police also extracted Sapna’s mobile call details. The investigation team was astonished to see the records. On the day of the murder, there were several calls and messages between Sapna and Harshpreet. One message read, ‘Call me as soon as the work is done.’ This message became the biggest clue for the police. Now suspicion was directly on the wife as well. Sapna did not want to live with her husband and had run away from home before. Harshpreet used to threaten suicide, so Sapna was also caught in the middle. Therefore, both decided that Manish had to be removed from their path. Harshpreet also involved his friend Aamir alias Ameen in this conspiracy. Aamir worked at Manish’s shop, so he had complete information about Manish’s daily routine and habits. Sapna had no remorse, nor any wrinkle on her forehead. There was no eyewitness to the incident, but the police had crucial evidence against the accused such as call detail records, mobile location, blood stains found in the car, and the post-mortem report. The case proceeded in the Bhopal District Court. Before sentencing, the accused pleaded for leniency from the court. Sapna stated that she is a woman and has a small daughter. The Bhopal District Court rejected the plea, and on August 11, 2016, Sapna Takhtani, Harshpreet Saluja, and Aamir alias Amin were found guilty of murder and sentenced to life imprisonment. After the verdict, one thing that surprised everyone was that there was no wrinkle on Sapna’s face. No remorse, no nervousness. While being taken to jail, she continued to converse normally with her family members. Post navigation Mother acquitted of son’s murder charges in Guna:High Court verdict in Abhyuday Jain case, says continuing trial without evidence violates justice Controversy erupts over Kinnar Shankaracharya:Sant Committee gives 11-day ultimatum, says, ‘Meddling with Sanatan tradition won’t be tolerated’
