Thane, Sep 29: A Ganesh mandal member in Maharashtra’s Thane district allegedly killed a friend following a dispute over the collection of funds for the recently concluded Ganpati festival, police said on Tuesday.
The incident occurred on Sunday night, and the accused was apprehended within 12 hours on Monday from a train at Kalyan railway station here as he tried to escape to his native place in Andhra Pradesh, they said.
The victim, Sandeep Dilip Madhiwal (29), and the accused, Govind Ramlu Koli alias Chinna (30), were members of the OBN Mitra Mandal in Ambernath. A dispute arose when Madhiwal questioned Koli about the festival funds collected and held by the latter.
Enraged by the questioning, Koli allegedly beat Madhiwal to death and fled the scene, a police official said.
After being alerted, police sprang into action and launched a probe. Acting on inputs, three police squads searched trains and nabbed Koli from a general compartment. He later confessed to the crime, the official said.
The accused has been booked on charges of murder, the police added. (PTI)
