Migrant worker death in Pune: Maha additional CS to monitor probe

An officer of the rank of Additional Chief Secretary in the home department of the Maharashtra government will monitor the progress of the investigation into the murder of Sukhen Mahato, the migrant labourer from Purulia, who was killed in Koregaon, Pune.

Pressure has reportedly been mounting on the Maharashtra government from various quarters over the incident.

Advertisement

Sukhen Mahato was allegedly killed on 10 February behind a hotel at Koregaon Bhima in Pune, under the jurisdiction of Sikrapur police station in Maharashtra. On 13 February, Abhishek Banerjee, national general secretary of the Trinamul Congress (TMC), visited the victim’s home in Bandhi village under Barabazar police station in Purulia. He alleged that Mahato was killed for speaking Bengali and demanded an impartial probe and the arrest of those responsible.

Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee also raised the issue on her official X handle, claiming that another Bengali-speaking migrant worker had been killed outside the state.

The Junglemahal Swaraj Morcha, which works on issues concerning migrant workers’ welfare in the state, wrote to Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis seeking an impartial investigation.

In a letter addressed to the organisation, the Maharashtra government stated that the Additional Chief Secretary of the home department had been instructed to supervise the progress of the investigation in the case.

Tulsiram Mahato, the elder brother of the deceased, said the Maharashtra Police had informed the family over the phone that one person had been arrested in connection with the murder.

Abhishek Banerjee had set a 10-day deadline for the Maharashtra government, ending on 23 February, and warned that a TMC delegation would visit Pune if appropriate action was not taken by then.

Sources said Purulia MP Jyotirmoy Singh Mahato has also urged Devendra Fadnavis to ensure an impartial and swift probe to uncover the truth behind the murder.

Meanwhile, another migrant labourer from Purulia has been missing for the past 10 months in Gandhinagar, Gujarat, where he had been employed in a pharmaceutical factory. The Gujarat CID (Crime) has been entrusted with investigating the disappearance of Anup Mahato, but he remains untraced.