Akhil Bharatiya Hindu Mahasabha President Ranjit Bachchan was shot dead because of an extra-marital relationship of his second wife, police said on Thursday. The 40-year-old Hindu leader, who had founded the Vishwa Hindu Mahasabha, was shot in the head on Sunday morning while his brother Aditya Srivastava was injured in the attack by the assailant who also snatched their mobile phones.
Revealing the details, Lucknow Police Commissioner Sujit Pandey said Ranjit Bachchan's second wife Smriti Srivastava wanted a divorce from him but their case was pending in the family court since 2016. Police said Smriti was keen on marrying Dipendra but Ranjit Bachchan was unwilling to leave her. On January 17, Ranjit had met Smriti and even slapped her, which became the provocation for the murder, Pandey said.
The Police Commissioner said that during the investigation, the police had probed all possible angles, including a terror angle.
"We found there were no financial disputes, no property disputes and no terror angle to the case. It emerged that Smriti had an affair with Dipendra and wanted to leave Ranjit Bachchan, who had four criminal cases against him. Through technical and electronic surveillance, we found the connection between Smriti, Dipendra, driver Sanjit and the shooter Jitendra," he said.
Ranjit Bachchan's second Smriti Srivastava, her paramour Dipendra and driver Sanjit Gauta, have been arrested in connection with the case. All three were held on Thursday, while the shooter -- Jitendra -- is yet to be arrested.
The attacker had covered himself in a shawl and was on foot. The police had released CCTV footages showing a suspect and announced a cash reward of Rs 50,000 for providing information.
Four police personnel, including a sub-inspector, were suspended for alleged laxity and a case was registered at the Hazratganj police station here in connection with the incident which occurred near the Collectorate building.
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