The railway police on Thursday said they had cracked the murder case of a 24-year-old man and arrested his two brothers for allegedly killing him over a property dispute and dumping his body on the railway track to make it look like suicide in Gadag district on April 8.
According to the police, the deceased Upendra Mali had a dispute over ancestral property with his elder brothers Thirupathi Mali, 25, and Ramanna Mali, 30. The deceased had taken ₹2 lakh from his brother to bequeath his share of property and did not return the land or money. The deceased was also allegedly sexually harassing his sister-in-law, which enraged the brothers to plan and kill him.
As per the plan, the duo invited him to drink and took him to the railway track. After a couple of drinks, they bludgeoned him to death with a stone. They later dumped the body on the railway track and returned home, said the police.
The next day, the Gadag police recovered the mutilated body of Upendra and registered a case of unnatural death. During the course of investigation, it was revealed that the death was due to bludgeoning and they stepped up the probe.
In the course of inquiry, the police found out that Upendra had differences with his brothers over property and brought the duo for questioning.
Detailed questioning led them to confess to the murder, said S.K. Soumyalatha, Superintendent of Police, Railways.