Police will probe whether Bhatia too had committed suicide like Parmar who was harassed by local politicians.
The death of Amar Bhatia, director (operations) of Mohan Group of Developers has raised questions whether he too had committed suicide like builder Suraj Parmar who had shot himself to death after being allegedly harassed by local politicians. The death of two renowned builders has sent shock waves across the realty industry which is witnessing a slowdown due to decline in property sales. Builder Suraj Parmar had already mentioned about the bureaucratic hurdles faced by builders while seeking permission for obtaining clearances for new projects.
Amar Bhatia was found dead on the railway tracks between Ambernath and Badlapur railway station on Sunday morning. Railway police said that he had committed suicide. Even Bhatia had written a letter to Thane District Collector Ashwini Joshi mentioning about the problems faced by him in the construction activities. He also had threatened to commit suicide if the government fails to resolve the issues faced by builders in the city. Bhatia has been overseeing the execution of various realty projects in the Ambernath and Badlapur belt.
DCP Rupali Ambure, Central Railway, GRP, says: “Before taking the extreme step, Amar had WhatsApped his uncle Rajkumar Bhatia on Saturday evening that he is committing suicide. He did not explain the reason. So prima facie, it looks like a case of suicide.”
While Bhatia’s advocate says that he died while crossing the railway tracks, the GRP says it is a case of suicide. Family members of Bhatia allege foul-play as they feel he wouldn’t have taken this drastic step. Police sources also said that his building contracts were also not in any kind of financial strain.
A senior police officer, who does not wish to be named, said: “A local activist from Badlapur-Ambernath had lodged a complaint against Amar about his ongoing projects in both places. He was under stress because of this. We will investigate if, like Suraj Parmar, he was also under pressure from any political lobby.”
The Thane police have decided to probe this matter, since Bhatia’s death comes in the backdrop of the Suraj Parmar case. The probe will ascertain if Bhatia was also under any political pressure
Police have not ruled out the murder angle and is further investigating the case. They will record the statement of Bhatia’s family members once they recover from the trauma of his death.
