Mohali: Man behind IISER researcher’s death lands in police net

On the run since Tuesday after beating to death his 39-year-old neighbour over a parking dispute in Sector 66, the accused has landed in police net.

The accused, Maninder Pal Singh, alias Monty, 35, is an IT engineer, said police.

The victim, Abhishek Swarnkar, a Bengal native, was a national post doctoral fellow at Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER), Mohali, and lived in a rented accommodation in Sector 66 with his parents.

The victim’s kin claimed that Monty had two cars and he didn’t allow Abhishek to park his bike in front of his rented house, leading to a dispute.

Detailing the sequence of events, police said the victim, who had undergone kidney transplant recently and was undergoing dialysis, had reached home around 8.30 pm on the fateful day. After he parked his bike opposite his house, the accused rushed out of the house and picked up an argument.

The furious suspect allegedly punched the victim in the chest following which he fell on the road and lost consciousness. The suspect himself rushed the victim to a private hospital in Sector 62, where he died during treatment. The suspect even hit a vehicle parked near his house while rushing the victim to hospital.

One of the victim’s two sisters had donated a kidney to the victim, who earlier worked in the US and returned to India due to his ill health.

An IISER official said Swarnkar was a promising youngster, who had been selected by the Union department of science and technology to meet Nobel Laureates in 2017.

The accused is facing charges under Section 105 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita at the Phase-11 police station. If proven, it entails imprisonment for life or a jail term up to 10 years, along with fine.