Fake Name, New SIM: Vaze’s Aide Among 2 Arrested in Hiren’s Death

Constable Vinayak Shinde, considered close to Vaze, allegedly posed as a certain Tawde to call Hiren.

Forty-five-year-old Mansukh Hiren was found dead on the banks of a creek in Mumbai on Friday.

(Image: The Quint)

As the probe in the Mukesh Ambani bomb scare case gets murkier, two people were arrested on Sunday, 21 March, by the Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS), in connection with the Mansukh Hiren murder case.

Naresh Dhare, a 31-year-old bookie, and Vinayak Shinde, a 55-year-old suspended constable presently on parole, were detained on Sunday morning, and subsequently arrested.

Hiren was the owner of the SUV that was found laden with explosives outside Antilia (Ambani residence) in Mumbai on 25 February.

Shinde Posed as ‘Tawde’ to Call Hiren

Sources told The Quint that Shinde – who was allegedly close to accused former cop Sachin Vaze – had called Hiren posing as ‘Tawde’ from Kandivali Crime Branch on 4 March, and had asked him to meet in Ghodbunder area of Mumbai. Hiren was found dead a day later.

In the FIR registered on 7 March, Hiren’s wife Kamala had alleged that he had left the house after a phone call from a certain police officer named ‘Tawde’.

Dhare, a bookie, had allegedly helped Shinde get a SIM card registered in Gujarat to make the phone call to Hiren.

The Mansukh Hiren Case

Hiren, the owner of the SUV that was found laden with explosives outside Mukesh Ambani’s residence, was found dead in a creek on 5 March.

Hiren’s car had been stolen from him just days before being discovered outside Antilla, on 25 February.

Meanwhile, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Saturday, 20 March, took over the case.

A formal order from the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has been issued to the NIA in this regard, sources told The Quint.

Earlier, on 8 March, the NIA had only taken over the case of explosives being discovered outside Antilia, which is being probed separately.

While former police officer Vaze had been arrested in the explosives case by the NIA, his alleged involvement in Hiren’s death was still being probed by the ATS.