Court extends judicial custody of Palande, wife

A Mumbai court on Wednesday extended till July 4 the judicial custody of gangster Vijay Palande, his model wife Simran Sood and two associates for their alleged complicity in the murder of Delhi-based businessman Arun Tikku and aspiring film producer Karan Kakkad.

The accused were produced before a court of metropolitan magistrate in Mumbai through video-conference.

Crime Branch informed the court that they would soon file charge sheet in the case after which the magistrate extended the judicial custody of the accused till July 4.

Palande was first arrested for the murder of Arun Tikku on April 10. He escaped from custody on the same day and was re-arrested few hours later.

Tikku was killed in his house by Palande's alleged associates Manoj Gajkosh and Dhanjay Shinde, whose judicial remand was also extended today.

The businessman owned some flats in a building near Lokhandwala complex in suburban Andheri. According to police, Palande wanted to usurp Tikku's properties and therefore had allegedly conspired to kill the 67-year-old businessman.

During interrogation, Palande confessed to have killed Kakkad also and told police that he had dumped his body in a forest near Chiplun in Ratnagiri district. Police claimed to have recovered a decomposed body which is believed to be that of Kakkad.

Sood is the wife of gangster Vijay Palande, but he had introduced her to many people as his sister, police told the court. She too is facing charges of conspiring to kill both Tikku and Kakkad.