Shankar Guha Neogi Murder Case

Shankar Guha Neogi, a top labour leader of Central India, was shot dead in September, 1991, while sleeping in his house. On the request of the Government of Madhya Pradesh, the CBI moved into action. Investigation disclosed that he had given a strike call to about 80,000 workers of his union in Bhillai-Raipur Belt, demanding remunerative wages and permanancy of jobs for them. As the strike continued for almost nine months, this naturally disturbed the functioning of several industrial units, particularly, that of steel manufacturing units of the Shah family. Investigation further disclosed that a member of the Shah famly, alongwith three others, including two local dons, had gone abroad to purchase fire arms for murdering Neogi. The clue came in the form of an anynomous inland letter giving the above information and mentioning the names of persons who had gone abroad. Suspicion was strengthened due to the disappearance of a member of the Shah family after the incident. Working on this clue, CBI, with the help of the local police, arrested the perpetrators of this crime. The Shah family had assigned the task of eliminating Neogi to a local don who hired a professional killer belonging to a neighbouring State. It was a case of contract killing and some money was paid before the killing by the Shah family and the balance amount was to be paid after the commission of crime. The killer absconded after the incident and it took almost two years to track him down. There were three tiers in the conspiracy. In the first tier were the motivators i.e the Shah family who wanted Neogi killed. In the second tier was the local don who organised the killing. The third tier consisted of the actual shooter and his associates.
After painstaking investigation, the charge sheet was filed against nine accused persons. The case was decided last year and the trial Court convicted seven accused. While six persons were given life imprisonment, the killer was ordered to be hanged. The case is now pending High Court confirmation of the death sentence. This is one of the few cases of organised crime in which three tiers of criminals, including two members of the Shah fimily, have been convicted.