‘Let us not discuss such unpleasant topics before dinner. Let’s go – we are already late.’
Within thirty minutes they had reached Delightful Barbeque. It was 11 pm by the time they completed a very satisfactory meal. While they were driving back to Vikram’s home, Vikram said, ‘Today Mrs Raju came to meet me.’
‘Who? Mrs Devaki Raju? I did advise her to meet you. You know that we police have our hands tied and have to follow protocols when following up a case. Sometimes we are also pressured by powerful political people who have their own axes to grind. You, on the other hand, can investigate freely. Let us do some parallel investigations in this case and help each other. What do you say?’
‘Are you being pressured by Vamsi Rao?’
‘So I see you are fairly acquainted with the case?’ Inspector Reddy avoided answering Vikram’s question by asking a question of his own. Vikram acknowledged the inspector’s clever dodge by displaying a wry smile.
‘Yes, I was doing a fair amount of research on the Internet today. Tell me, how far have you progressed with the investigation?’
‘Well, Vikram, I genuinely think that Mr Raju’s son, Pavel, is involved in some way. He has the strongest motive as Krishna shot his father in cold blood, and it looked like he was going to get away with it. After all, Pavel is a hot-blooded young man!’
‘But Mrs Raju feels that her son is innocent.’
‘Any mother would feel that way about her son.’
‘But other than a strong motive, do you have any other proof that he actually killed Krishna?’
‘No, but we are working towards it,’ Inspector Reddy said evasively. ‘I am planning to go to Bowenpally to see Mrs Raju and her son tomorrow. I will also meet Kamini Dhavala after that. You can tag along if you like.’
‘Sure – thanks Reddy Sir. I will be ready by eight-thirty in the morning. Will you pick me up?’
‘Sure I will, Vikram. We should reach Bowenpally by nine-thirty in the morning at the latest. It’s getting late…I should go home.’
2
Pavel Raju
The next day Inspector Reddy picked up Vikram and they started their long ride to Bowenpally. ‘Lucky that today is a Sunday,’ remarked Vikram. ‘There is no traffic and it is always a pleasure to go on a long drive with you, Reddy Sir.’
‘Yes, same here, Vikram. We should do this more often.’
Inspector Reddy continued driving at a medium fast pace. They reached Mrs Raju’s house around nine-thirty. A servant opened the door and directed them to the drawing room. They passed a puja room before entering the drawing room. The puja room was full of gleaming idols of various Gods and Godessses. Even the drawing room had pictures of various Gods and Goddesses. Mrs Raju came down with Pavel. This was the first time Vikram had met Pavel, and to him, he looked like a typical geeky, studious boy. He was tall and lanky with greasy hair. His clothes did not match and it was clear that he did not care much about his personal appearance.
Mrs Raju said, ‘Namaskar. Nice to see you again. This is my son, Pavel.’
Vikram said, ‘Nice name, Pavel.’ He then looked at Devaki and asked, ‘Were you a fan of Gorky?’
Devaki smiled and said, ‘I am a big fan of Maxim Gorky and his novel, Mother.’
‘You seem to be quite a religious person.’ Vikram commented.
‘My husband used to say that fear of God is beginning of wisdom. Pavel has taken after him. He is also god-fearing and religious. He takes care of the puja room whenever he is at home. When he attends college and stays in the hostel, only I am allowed to touch the idols and take care of the puja room. Nobody else is allowed to go in there.’
Vikram looked at Pavel and asked, ‘Is that true?’
Pavel smiled and nodded shyly.
Inspector Reddy asked, ‘Where do you study?’
Devaki responded on his behalf, ‘Pavel is studying electronics engineering at NIT Warangal. He is in the fourth year. By the way would you like some tea?’ Vikram noted that Pavel was quite content to let his mother answer on his behalf.
Inspector Reddy said, ‘Sure Mrs Raju, after such a long drive, a cup of tea would be most welcome.’
Devaki Raju asked the cook to prepare tea and then turned to Vikram and said, ‘After my husband’s untimely death I survived only because of Pavel. Now if he is falsely accused, where will I go? What will I do? He has worked so hard and is looking forward to a bright career, and now he is suspected of murder?’ Devaki looked extremely distressed. Pavel’s emotions mirrored those of his mother.
Vikram was moved and said, ‘Do not worry, Mrs Raju, I am behind you. I will do my utmost to find out the murderer.’
He then looked at Pavel. ‘I need to ask you some questions in private. You must answer truthfully and with full details so that I can help you.’
Mrs Raju said, ‘I will see to the tea,’ and tactfully left the room.
‘So let us start. Mr Krishna Mohan Dhavala was stabbed to dead on the 15th of June. What were you doing on that day?’
‘I had college on that day, but it being a Friday, I d-d-decided not to attend and instead came down here to be with my m-mmother. She is suffering from depression due to father’s death and my presence comforts her.’ Pavel had a tendency to stutter occassionally. He was obviously a very sensitive young man. Now Vikram understood his unwillingness to speak up.
‘So you spent all that long weekend with her.’
‘Yes, and I went back early Monday m-morning and attended classes as u-usual.’
‘Were you at home or did you go out anytime during that long weekend?’
‘N-No, I had an e-e-exam s-scheduled the next Monday. So I was busy studying. My m-m-mother can vouch for that. Oh yes I remember – I went to the local M-M-Mandir on Friday evening around 7 pm. I v-visit the M-Mandir every Friday evening.’
‘Are there any witnesses who can swear that you were in the Mandir?’
‘Yes – the P-pujariji knows me very well. He can confirm.’
‘So you were here the day Krishna Mohan Dhavala was stabbed. It is a pity that you missed your classes that day; otherwise you would have a watertight alibi. By the way, how did you feel when you heard of Kirshna’s murder?’
Pavel hesitated a bit, as if he was unsure how to answer that question. Then he said, ‘I felt very happy that he got what he d-deserved. But after some time, I also felt sorry for Madhu. He had been a good friend of mine. Anybody whose father dies deserves p-p-pity. We used to get along very well with Mr Dhavala’s children and their m- mother, Kamini aunty. We used to go over to their house quite often and they also used to come over here. In fact, M-Madhu and I, and later his y-y-younger brother all s-s-studied at St Joseph’s convent school in Secunderabad. Sometimes they felt um,um, uncomfortable with their father’s behaviour, but they had no control over him. We still feel sorry for them. B-B-But after Mr Dhavala killed my father, we did not keep in touch.’
Inspector Reddy asked bluntly, ‘Don’t you feel bitter that Mr Dhavala was not arrested, and that he got out on bail after killing your father?’
Pavel said, ‘Of course both my m-mother and I felt extremely bitter. But we are law-abiding folks. What can we do? We tried to um, take the only positive way out, which was to focus on my studies and then go to the US and take my m-mother with me. We wanted to end this chapter of our lives and get away as far as p-p-possible.’
Meanwhile, the cook came in with the tea. Mrs Raju also came in with some samosas. At that moment the door bell rang and a tall, very fair and strikingly beautiful girl walked in.
She was smiling as she walked in, but stopped abruptly upon seeing the two men.
Devaki smiled and said, ‘Khushi – nice to see you this morning.’ Pavel had also perked up on seeing the girl and gave her a tentative smile. She was like a ray of sunshine in the slightly mournful group.
Devaki now turned to the two men and said, ‘Meet my son’s fiancée, Khushi. Khushi and Pavel have been sweethearts since childhood.�
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‘Khushi – meet Inspector Gopi Reddy and Vikram Rana. They are here to sort out the murders of Krishna and Pavel’s father.’
Khushi smiled at the two men and sat down by Pavel’s side. It was quite apparent to the two men that a strong bond of love and trust existed between Pavel, Devaki and Khushi.
Vikram smiled at Khushi and said, ‘What do you do, Khushi?’
‘I completed my graduation in Fine Arts and now have opened my own dancing school.’
Vikram would have guessed that she had an artistic nature by the elegance and grace with which she carried herself. She was wearing a jean and batik printed top with chunky jewels to match. The overall effect was extremely pleasing.
After tea, Inspector Reddy and Vikram got up to leave. Inspector Reddy said, ‘We have finished here. We would also like to question Mrs Dhavala. Do you know where she lives?’
Mrs Raju said ‘Yes, she now lives in her marital home in Banjara Hills. Since Krishna died without a will, she has inherited all his property’.
Inspector Reddy said, ‘Oho….. that sounds very suggestive.’
Khushi burst out, ‘Kamini aunty is a very good woman, a great mother. But Krishna was a nasty man. She tried her best to make the marriage work.’
Vikram looked perplexed. ‘How do you know Mrs Kamini Dhavala?’ he asked, looking at Khushi.
Devaki responded on her behalf, ‘Khushi’s mother Janaki and Mrs Kamini Dhavala are very close friends. When she could not tolerate his torture anymore, she left but never asked for anything from him. She was working in a BPO in Madhapur, after leaving Krishna. It was only after his death that she quit the job and came back to stay with her children. The children are also very happy now.’
‘How do you know all this?’ Vikram asked.
‘Before my husband’s death Kamini and I were close friends. We still get news about her from Khushi and other common friends, ‘Mrs Devaki Raju responded with a faint smile, as if she were remembering better times.
Vikram said, ‘We would also like to meet Bilas, Krishna’s driver’.
‘I think he lives in Kamalapuri Colony, but am not sure exactly where,’ Mrs Raju said. ‘I cannot even tell you whether he still works as their driver.’
‘Okay, we will find out from Mrs Dhavala,’ Vikram said. The two men took leave to go meet Mrs Kamini Dhavala. In the car, Reddy said, ‘I wonder how Khushi could have fallen in love with an unkempt, stuttering, geeky boy like Pavel.’
‘Well, you heard that they have been sweethearts since childhood. When you fall in love with someone at so young an age, you do tend to overlook such things.’
Reddy started the car. Vikram said, ‘Before we go to meet Mrs Dhavala, let us go and meet the Pujari in the temple. I want to confirm that Pavel really did go to the temple.’
The Pujari was about to close the temple and go home when they arrived at the temple. He looked like a cranky old man who was clearly irritated by the advent of the two men arriving at closing time.
‘Pujariji, sorry to catch you so late. We will need only a few minutes of your time.’
‘Well, hurry up, young man. I have been up since 5 am doing puja. I have to be back by 5 pm to open the Mandir for the evening. I need some rest.’
‘Yes, yes - obviously. Our appologies again. Just wanted to know whether Pavel had come to the temple on the 15th of June.’
The old pujari smiled at the mention of Pavel. He was clearly fond of him.
‘Yes, Pavel comes to the Mandir whenever he is here. He studies engineering in Warangal. So whenever he comes down here, he visits the Mandir especially if it is a Friday. He is a very nice and god-fearing person.’
‘But was he here on the 15th of June?’
‘Young man, this is July. How can you expect me to remember a routine occurance that happened almost a month back?’ the Pujari snapped back.
‘We will guide you. It was the weekend when Krishna Dhavala was killed. The news was splashed across a number of newspapers. Pavel was one of the suspects that the Police questioned at that time.’
‘Oh – that weekend. Now I remember. Why, Krishna Mohan was Pavel’s father’s business partner. That is what had struck me at that time. Karuna Sir was also a regular visitor in this temple. He used to come with Pavel every Friday. Everyone knew that Krishna Mohan killed Karuna. That is why God avenged the death of such a pious man by killing Krishna Mohan. As they say, the wheels of God grind slow but extremely fine.’
Vikram said, ‘Yes that is true, but did Pavel come to the Mandir on that weekend?’
‘Pavel was in the temple as usual on that Friday. We were very upset when the police questioned him. He is such a nice and good-mannered boy.’
‘Okay, that was what we wanted to confirm. Thank you so much for your time. Namaskar Pujariji.’
Vikram and Reddy paid their respect to the Godess and after putting a donation in the donation box, started on their way to Banjar Hills to meet Kamini.
3
Mrs Kamini Dhavala
Inspector Reddy and Vikram started for Banjara Hills, driving towards Mrs Dhavala’s residence. Once they reached the house, Vikram let out a long, low whistle. ‘Look at this house. Krishna Mohan Dhavala must have been extremely rich, and he liked to flaunt his wealth, I would say!’
‘Yes, he had become a big shot property developer. I believe that the film star, Dev, bought several apartments from him. His apartments are all extremely modern, well-designed and aesthetically pleasing. He delivered on time and was a good businessman. Krishna should have been grateful to Karuna Raju for the quality design and excellent engineering he contributed to their projects. Instead, he killed the poor fellow. The more I get to know about this Krishna, the more repulsive I find him.’
They crossed the front garden and the portico and rang the bell at the imposing front door. A house maid opened the door and asked, ‘May I help you?’
At that moment, there was the sound of a child laughing. Then a small girl of around five came running. A beautiful woman in her early thirties was pursuing her. She was also laughing. Seeing the two gentlemen at the door, she stopped abruptly.
Adjusting the pallu of her saree she asked, ‘May I help you, gentlemen?’
Inspector Reddy showed her his badge and said, ‘We want to see Mrs Kamini Dhavala.’
The woman looked at the servant and asked her to take the little girl inside the house. Then she turned back toward the Inspector and with great composure, introduced herself as Mrs Kamini Dhavala, She invited them into a tastefully decorated drawing room. Seeing her curious look towards Vikram, Inspector Reddy introduced him.
‘This is Vikram Rana. Mrs. Raju has requested that he investigate her husband’s murder in a private capacity.’
Vikram was finding it hard to look away from Kamini’s ravishingly attractive face. She was like a beautiful fragile flower. Vikram found it bewildering that anybody could come home drunk and want to hurt her mentally and physically.
Kamini herself was looking at them with a wooden face. ‘So what can I do for you gentlemen?’ Was there a gentle irony in her tone? Was she a bit embarrassed with the overall situation? It was impossible to fathom from her inscrutable expression.
Inspector Reddy seemed a bit hostile to Kamini. Perhaps the fact that she was now the owner of all her dead husband’s ill-gotten riches rankled him. He was after all, one of those rare species – an honest police officer living on a modest government salary.
He asked, ‘So, Mrs Dhavala, how is life after your husband’s death?’ quite crudely, Vikram thought.
Was Kamini Dhavala offended by this jibe? There was no way of telling. Maybe all the hardships she had faced for so much of her young life had equipped her to handle insults with an impassive face and heart, Vikram mused.
Kamini was speaking and he abruptly focussed on what she had to say.
‘As everyone knows, ours was not a happy marriage. My husband used to come home drunk and beat me up. I saw how our chil
dren were suffering because of our fights. It broke my heart to leave them, but I felt that their father could provide for them much better than I could.’
‘Were you not worried that the children would suffer in the absence of a mother?’ Vilram asked.
‘Krishna was not cruel to the children, merely indifferent. And they also had Malti, their long time nanny who loved them and had helped me bring them up. I kept in touch with them over the phone. And since the time Madhu moved into engineering college, I went down to meet him every week,’ Kamini responded defensively.
Vikram asked now, ‘How many kids do you have, Mrs Dhavala?’
‘I have three, two boys…Madhusudan and Nishant, and a girl, Keerti. Just now you saw my girl. Madhusudan was born within a year of our marriage and three years later my second son Nishant was born. My mother-in-law and father-in-law died within two years of that – they had gone to Goa and had met with a car accident there. Nishant was only two at that time. ’
Vikram said ‘You seemed to have a happy marriage initially. What went wrong?’ His sympathetic tone perhaps touched a chord. A small sigh escaped Kamini’s lips.
‘When Krishna’s parents died, he started drinking heavily. He also started going around with a lot of unsavoury characters. He became closer to Vamsi Rao around the same time. They were drinking buddies. Krishna regularly used to come home drunk and he became violent towards me whenever he was drunk. In the end, to protect myself I used to lock myself in the spare bedroom before he came home just to avoid his violence. Then he started going to other women. For eight years I bore this torture.’
‘Why did you not leave him earlier? I think that you tried to stick to the marriage for financial benefits. ’ Reddy was determined to be hostile. For a moment Kamini’s face hardened as if she was finally riled by his offensive comments. But she overcame her momentary weakness and said in a neutral voice, ‘I am from a poor family and had no one to support me if I left Krishna.There was no where else I could go. Then one day Bilas came home at two in the morning and informed me that someone had tried to kill Krishna when he was returning home from the bar. Bilas had fended off the attacker and driven Krishna straight to Care Hospital. He was in the ICU in a critical condition for a week. I threw my heart and soul into nursing him back to good health. Our married life became better as he had to stop drinking as per the doctor’s orders. Our daughter Keerti was born during this time. But he soon reverted back to his old ways. This time I could not take it anymore. I moved in with my parents. I sold off my jewellery and with that money I joined a course on computers and also started a correspondence course for graduation. I had studied in St Joseph Convent and could speak reasonably good English. With the help of a friend, I got a job with the reputed BPO Wonderphone and moved to a hostel in Madhapur.’
Vikram Rana Investigates: Tales of Murder and Deception in Hyderabad Page 10