The Ellisbridge police with assistance of Ahmedabad Crime Branch, cracked the murder of vegetable vendor Badamji Modi in Nehrunagar. Modi was shot dead at Nehrunagar’s Borana vegetable shop on November 16. Investigation has found that the murder was executed by contract killers hired by the deceased’s nephew.

The killers were hired for a sum of ₹25 lakh. With the help of CCTV footage of the surrounding areas and human intelligence, accused Kuldeep Parmar (22) and Ankit Bhadoria (21), both from Bhind, Madhya Pradesh, and Annu Rajput (24), from Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh, were arrested within 48 hours of the incident.

All three were employed as fruit loaders at the Naroda Fruit Market and lived in Ahmedabad's Memco area.

The fourth accused, Ashok Khetaram Modi (alias Marwari), the victim’s nephew, was found to have orchestrated the entire plot. Sources said that Ashok, who had a working relationship with the accused, provided them with the weapon and the motorcycle used in the murder. He had paid them an advance of ₹75,000 out of the ₹25 lakh contract for execution of the crime.

“After the killing, the assailants fled the scene on their motorcycle and made their way to Kalupur Railway Station. As trains were unavailable, they travelled to Rajasthan by bus, before reaching Ratlam, Madhya Pradesh. The Crime Branch team tracked them down and arrested them in Ratlam, bringing them back to Ahmedabad,” said a senior crime branch police officer.

Further interrogation revealed that Ashok Modi had long harboured animosity towards his uncle, likely motivated by land disputes. It was also found that a dispute of land worth ₹2.5 crore was ongoing between Ashok’s father Khetaram and Badamji. 

For the past two months, the accused had been analysing the entire routine of the victim before plotting the attack.

A history of attacks

This is not the first time the Modi family has been targeted. In 2023, Badamji’s elder brother, Khetaram Modi, was strangled to death in Rajasthan’s Mandwad village.

The case remains unsolved, with the accused still at large. Khetaram was Ashok’s father. Ashok had suspicion that Badamji had killed his father over the land dispute between the families. 

In October 2024, Badamji was attacked on Manekbaug Road in Ahmedabad by an assailant armed with a sharp weapon. Though he escaped with minor injuries, police were unable to apprehend the attacker, as the bike used in the incident had no licence plate.

During investigation it was revealed that the attack was also orchestrated by the same accused.

Also read:

Vegetable vendor shot at shop in Ahmedabad, dies during treatment