New Delhi, Oct 15 (IANS) In a dramatic breakthrough, Mumbai’s Colaba Police have arrested a man who had been absconding for an astonishing 48 years, in connection with an attempted murder case dating back to 1977.

The accused, identified as 71-year-old Chandrashekhar Madhukar Kalekar, was arrested from a residence in Dapoli, Ratnagiri district. He was 23 years old at the time of the alleged crime.

According to the police, Kalekar had attacked his girlfriend with a knife in Colaba after suspecting her of being unfaithful. He was arrested then and later released on bail, but never appeared in court again.

“After he was granted bail, he stopped attending court proceedings. Multiple warrants were issued against him over the years, and he was eventually declared a proclaimed offender,” said a senior officer from Colaba Police. “We had been searching for him for decades.”

The trail went cold when Kalekar, who was living in Haji Kasam Chawl in Lalbaug, relocated after the chawl was redeveloped. Six months ago, Colaba Police reopened the case and began a fresh search. Officers visited his last known address only to find a redeveloped building in place of the chawl. They scoured various parts of Mumbai, checked voter lists, and looked through public records, but his name was nowhere to be found.

“We couldn’t trace him through any electoral records. So, we began checking court records and transport department databases. That’s when we stumbled upon a 2015 criminal case registered against him at Dapoli Police Station for injuring a person in a road rage incident,” the officer said.

Though uncertain if Kalekar still resided at the address listed in the Dapoli case, a police team visited the location late Monday night, and to their surprise, found him there. “He was shocked to see the police at his doorstep after 48 years. He had almost forgotten about the case,” said the officer.

At the time of the alleged crime, Kalekar was a young man of 23. Now 71, his appearance had changed significantly.

“It was difficult to identify him based on the decades-old photographs we had. But when questioned, he confessed to the crime,” said the police.

Kalekar was produced in court and has been remanded to judicial custody.

–IANS

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