Bomb threat to death: Decoding the case
Shortly after Hiran’s body washed up in a creek in Thane on March 5, his family stopped talking to the media. Till then, Hiran, Vimla; brother, Vinod (50), and older son, Meet (21), had addressed the scrutiny that accompanied the discovery that the Scorpio had been traced to them.
Maharashtra leader of opposition Devendra Fadnavis claimed in the assembly on Tuesday that Mansukh Hiran, a 48-year-old businessman, was likely murdered and demanded the arrest of a police officer.
Fadnavis based his claims on the statement that Hiran’s wife, 43-year-old Vimla, gave to the Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) two days after her husband’s body washed up on the Reti Bunder creek in Thane district. Vimla told investigators that she was certain her husband had been murdered, and that she suspected Vaze had a hand in it.
Till he went missing on March 4, Hiran was questioned repeatedly after an SUV that he had reported stolen on February 18, was found parked outside Antilla, the house of billionaire Mukesh Ambani. The car had 20 sticks of gelatin and a threatening letter addressed to Ambani.
Who owned the SUV parked outside Ambani’s house? Who is Vaze? Why does Vimla think that her husband was murdered and did not drown?
A Scorpio outside Antilia
On February 25, Gamdevi police sub-inspector Amit Kadam received a call around 3 pm. Bharat Patil, a security officer at Antilla informed Kadam of a Mahindra Scorpio SUV parked on Carmichael Road. Kadam called the Bomb Detection and Disposal Squad (BDDS) team, which found a blue sack with a Mumbai Indians logo, which contained 20 loose gelatin sticks along with the threatening letter.
The real SUV owner
Shortly after Hiran’s body washed up in a creek in Thane on March 5, his family stopped talking to the media. Till then, Hiran, Vimla; brother, Vinod (50), and older son, Meet (21), had addressed the scrutiny that accompanied the discovery that the Scorpio had been traced to them.
On March 7, Vimla gave a statement to the ATS, saying that she was certain her husband was murdered. Based on her statement, the ATS filed a case of murder against unknown persons. Vimla told the investigators that the vehicle belonged to a certain Dr Peter Newton. It was, however, in possession of the Hirans for the past three years. Hiran, who knew Vaze well, lent him the Scorpio in November 2020. Vaze’s driver dropped off the car at Hiran’s shop in Thane, on February 5, 2021. On February 17, Hiran was driving in the vehicle but left it on the side of the road as its steering was not smooth, and continued his journey in a taxi. The following day, he took a mechanic to bring the vehicle to his shop. However, he found the car was stolen and lodged a complaint with Vikhroli police.
What initial probe said
On February 26, Vaze took the lead in the investigation. The police checked the footage of CCTV cameras installed outside a departmental store, just across the road from where the Scorpio was parked. They found that the Scorpio and an Innova reached Carmichael Road on the intervening night of February 24 and 25. During investigations, the police came across a report about a missing Scorpio. The police asked Hiran to visit the CIU office. “On February 25, an ATS official named Salvi called my husband and asked him to meet him. My husband and son met Salvi, who showed them a picture of an SUV found near Ambani’s house. My husband identified the vehicle. He also showed the FIR copy to him,” Vimla’s statement to the ATS, read. The same night, ATS officer Shivaji Chavan visited their residence and took Hiran to the Vikroli ATS unit. There, he was shown some CCTV footage. He was brought back to his house at 6.30 am on February 26, the statement added.
What Vimla told ATS
On March 2, Hiran wrote a letter to authorities complaining that he was being harassed by police and a particular media person.
The following day, Hiran told her that Vaze had advised him to get arrested and he would be granted bail in a few days, the statement read. On March 4, Hiran returned from his shop at 8.30 pm and told her that he was going to meet a police officer named Tawade. Vimla said that when she tried calling her husband at 11 pm, his mobile phone was switched off. The following morning, Meet and Vinod lodged a missing person’s report. Hiran’s body was found by fishermen on March 5 around 10.30 am. Prima facie, the police said, it seemed that Hiran had died by suicide. But Vimla said that Hiran was too good a swimmer to have drowned. “Our doctors said his lungs were not filled with water and were soft…,” Vinod said. “I suspect Sachin Vaze could have committed the said murder,” the last few lines of Vimla’s statement read.