Police have revised key elements of their account of the murder of retired Rangpur Zilla School teacher Ganapati Chakraborty and three members of his family, changing details about where and how the victims were killed while introducing land-related resentment as another possible motive.
The new account came Thursday amid growing public scepticism over the sensational killings, with teachers, former students and residents having already questioned the police version.
Rangpur Metropolitan Police Commissioner Mohammad Abdul Mabud said Ganapati, 65, his wife Pritilata Chakraborty, 50, and daughter Agami Chakraborty, 25, were killed on the open third-floor terrace of their Machuapara home.
The bodies of the two women were then moved inside the rooftop entrance to conceal them from neighbours, he said.
Their 12-year-old son Ayush was killed after waking up and seeing one of the suspects inside the house.
That differs from the account police gave Sunday, when they said Ganapati was killed on the roof, his wife and daughter on the staircase and Ayush while he was asleep.
Explaining the discrepancy, Mabud said the suspects later told the court that Ayush had awakened and recognised Siddhartha Das.
According to police, Siddhartha and Mugdha Das had consumed eight yaba pills behind a rooftop water tank before Ganapati confronted them early in the morning. The pair then allegedly strangled him with a towel.
When Pritilata and Agami came upstairs after hearing the commotion, they too were strangled, police said.
The suspects allegedly later cut the house’s electricity connection, fearing the presence of CCTV cameras.
After entering the house, they encountered Ayush, who asked Siddhartha why he was there. Police said the boy was then suffocated to prevent him from raising an alarm.
Post-mortem examinations have confirmed that all four victims died from strangulation, according to the commissioner. He said tests found no evidence of rape.
Police have also broadened their investigation into the motive.
While initially attributing the killings to Ganapati’s objection to drug use on his rooftop, investigators are now examining possible resentment involving land purchased by Ganapati’s family from Siddhartha’s ancestors and alleged disputes over distribution of the proceeds.
Police are also examining whether social tensions between Ganapati’s Brahmin family and residents belonging largely to the Das community played any role.
Questions over the shifting account dominated Thursday’s press conference.
However, the commissioner left after answering only two questions, prompting protests from journalists seeking clarification over the changes in the police narrative.
The bodies of Ganapati, Pritilata, Agami and Ayush were recovered from their Rangpur home Saturday night.
Police maintain that Siddhartha and Mugdha carried out all four killings, while the investigation into the motive continues.
