Congress leader’s son murdered in Chhattisgarh: 3 contract killers arrested, mastermind on the run

In a major breakthrough, the Janjgir-Champa police have arrested three individuals in connection with the brutal murder of Ayush Kashyap, the 19-year-old son of a local Congress leader. The young student was gunned down inside his home in Karhi village on the intervening night of April 23 and 24. According to local authorities, the killing was the fallout of professional rivalry, financial disputes, and growing resentment over the family’s expanding sand and transport business.

The arrested accused have been identified as Hemant Kumar Baghel (23), Bhushan Baghel (23), and Amit Tandon (28), all residents of the same village. However, the prime mastermind behind the contract killing and a few other associates remain at large.

Midnight attack shaking Karhi village

The incident took place under the jurisdiction of the Birra police station. Late in the evening, three masked men managed to sneak into the residence of Sammelal Kashyap, a prominent cement-sand trader and former Block Congress Vice President.

Before executing the crime, the attackers locked the victim’s parents in their bedroom from the outside to prevent any immediate resistance. They then barged into the room where Ayush, a second-year BA LLB student, was sleeping alongside his younger brother Ashutosh (16) and sister Prerna. The assailants shot Ayush twice in the head and chest, killing him on the spot. Ashutosh, a Class 10 student, sustained a gunshot wound to his shoulder while attempting to save his brother.

Business rivalry behind the hit

Initial reports indicate that the murder was orchestrated out of jealousy over the family’s rapidly growing financial influence. Ayush had recently taken charge of his father's sand and gravel business, actively managing operations after acquiring new heavy machinery, including a JCB and a Hyva truck.

"The suspects confessed that they were envious of the young man's rising business clout and influence in the region," a senior police official familiar with the matter said. During interrogation, Bhushan Baghel revealed that his family had an ongoing financial dispute with the Kashyaps regarding an unpaid loan. This grudge, combined with intense corporate competition, prompted them to accept a hit contract. Disturbingly, sources revealed that Bhushan had previously taken a ₹7 lakh bounty in 2023 to assassinate Sammelal Kashyap, though that attempt had failed.

Inter-state manhunt nabs trio

Following the attack, the accused fled the state and took refuge in Gujarat, taking up manual labor jobs to blend in. The Chhattisgarh police launched a massive multi-state investigation dubbed 'Operation Hunt'. Joint teams from Korba, Janjgir, and Bilaspur districts tracked leads across seven states, including Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Odisha, Delhi, and Jammu & Kashmir.

Investigators scanned over 200 CCTV footprints and utilized cyber surveillance to zero in on the suspects. Recognizing local patterns, the police summoned the trio back to Chhattisgarh under a pretext for questioning, where they eventually cracked and confessed to the crime.

Weapons recovered, hunt continues

Local authorities confirmed the recovery of a pistol, two magazines, and a motorcycle used during the commission of the crime. Ground-level cues indicate that the suspects had closely monitored the house, even destroying a CCTV camera mounted near the property just before breaking in to escape detection.

While the primary executioners are behind bars, Janjgir-Champa Superintendent of Police Vijay Kumar Pandey, who recently visited the grieving family in Karhi village, stated that the investigation is far from over. Teams are currently deployed to track down the exact source of the funding and apprehend the mastermind who ordered the hit on the Congress leader’s son.