Former NCP leader accused of killing son over property

Mumbai: A youth was shot dead and his brother seriously injured by their father, a former NCP leader from Khed assembly, in a property dispute in Mumbai, the police said. The incident took place on Friday afternoon, say the police.

According to an official of the Malabar Hill police station, the shooting occurred at the home of Keshav Bhosale, a former leader of Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and an ex-policeman.

Bhosale and his two sons from his first wife, who died 25 years ago, had gathered to observe her death anniversary. His second wife and her four daughters were also there.

At the ceremony, sons Ganesh, 30, and Rajesh, 28, expressed resentment as their mother's photograph was not kept for them and other relatives to pay homage to.

This led to the sons raising an old demand for a share in Bhosale's property, the police official said.

Bhosale reportedly owns three flats in the Peshwa Building in the upscale Malabar Hill area.

As tempers rose, Bhosale said he would never part with his property and if his sons persisted, he threatened to kill them. The sons retorted and challenged him to finish them off.

At this, Bhosale, aged around 65, got up and brought a sword which he menacingly brandished at his sons.

When they refused to budge, he whipped out a licenced revolver and pumped two bullets into each of them, as the horrified sisters looked on.

Even as Bhosale attempted to cause more harm, one of the sons grabbed the revolver and shot his father, injuring him in the arm, the police said.

The sons were rushed to the St Elizabeth Hospital, but Ganesh, who was shot in the head and chest, was declared dead on admission. Rajesh, shot in the face and abdomen, is said to be serious, the police said.

Bhosale was undergoing treatment at the Bhatia Hospital in south Mumbai.

Deputy Commissioner of Police (Zone II) Sanjay Mohite told IANS that investigations were on and the case will be examined from various angles.

He said that the police will decide what sections to invoke against Bhosale in the matter after recording the statements of all those present at the time of the incident.

Bhosale was nominated as an NCP candidate from the Khed assembly constituency of Ratnagiri district in the 1999 Maharashtra elections.

Earlier, he worked with the Maharashtra police but was sacked after he was found involved in a smuggling case.