Siliguri, 20th December: A special team from Bhakti Nagar police station in Siliguri arrived in the city on Thursday night with Arun Portel, a paramilitary soldier arrested in connection with the Pushpa Chhetri murder case. The police had apprehended Arun from Amritsar, in Punjab, earlier this week. He was arrested as the fourth and the prime accused in the case, and after being granted a 10-day transit remand, he was brought to Siliguri for further legal proceedings.
Notably, on November 8, the police found Pushpa’s blood-stained body in the Bhanu Nagar area of Siliguri. Following this, the police initiated an investigation, which revealed that Arun Portel, who was serving in a paramilitary force in Punjab, had orchestrated the murder. Arun was involved in an extramarital affair with Pushpa and had planned to end it by conspiring against her with his wife, Pratika Portel. They reportedly hired assassins to eliminate Pushpa.
After uncovering the plot, the Bhakti Nagar police arrested Pratika Portel and the hired killer, Rustam Vishwakarma, on November 15. On November 18, another contract killer, Abhijit Darji, was arrested in Chennai. After the three arrests, the officials intensified the search operation of Arun Portel.
A special team, including officers Abhishek Thing and Labang Bamjang from Bhakti Nagar Police, was formed to escort Portel. The team traveled to Punjab last Sunday, and after completing the necessary legal formalities with paramilitary unit authorities, they arrested Arun on Monday. The police then took him to the Amritsar court, where he was presented and taken into transit remand before being sent to Siliguri.
Upon arriving in Siliguri, Arun Portel was presented in the Jalpaiguri Court on Friday, as police are continuing their investigation into the case.