Key accused in Chhattisgarh journalist murder case held in Hyderabad

Suresh Chandrakar, the prime accused in the murder of a journalist in Chhattisgarh's Bijapur district, has been taken into custody by a Special Investigation Team (SIT) from Hyderabad, a police official said on Monday.

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The accused, a contractor by profession, was absconding since the murder of journalist Mukesh Chandrakar came to light on January 3, he said.

The SIT, which was constituted to conduct the probe into the case, rounded up Suresh Chandrakar from Hyderabad late Sunday night, the official said.

His brothers Ritesh Chandrakar and Dinesh Chandrakar and supervisor Mahendra Ramteke have already been arrested in the case, he said.

Mukesh Chandrakar (33), a freelance journalist, went missing on January 1. His body was found on January 3 in a septic tank on a property owned by Suresh Chandrakar at Chattanpara Basti in Bijapur town, police earlier said.

A news report highlighting alleged corruption in a road construction work in Bijapur, that was shown on NDTV on December 25, is being discussed as the motive behind Mukesh Chandrakar's murder.

The said construction work was linked to contractor Suresh Chandrakar

Chhattisgarh Deputy Chief Minister Vijay Sharma had claimed that Suresh Chandrakar was a Congress leader. The opposition party, however, claimed the accused joined the ruling BJP recently.