Palande, Shinde to undergo polygraph test today

With the court granting police permission to conduct narco tests on Vijay Palande and his aide Dhananjay Shinde, the duo were brought to the Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) in Kalina, Santacruz (E), at 11am yesterday.

Truth awaits: Murder accused Vijay Palande and his accomplice Dhananjay Shinde were sent to Bhabha hospital for several medical check ups yesterday. File pic

The police officers had waited till yesterday to carry out the tests, as they wanted time to prepare the questionnaire and interrogate them during the narco analysis. But, after two hours of medical examination, the forensic experts, however, sent Palande to Bhabha hospital, Bandra, for several medical tests. "The medical check up must be conducted before the polygraph, brain mapping and narco analysis tests," said a Crime Branch officer, on condition of anonymity.

"Today, another medical test will be conducted again, and after that he will be taken for the polygraph test," said the officer. "The brain mapping will be done tomorrow, while the narco analysis can also be done whilst they are in jail custody, as the police custody will expire on Thursday," added the officer.

Few months ago, after the arrest of both the accused, the police had recovered the skull of an unidentified person from Kumbhari Ghat, near Chiplun. While the two accused insist that the skull belongs to Karan Kakkad, the DNA report does not match the aspiring film producer's sample. In an attempt to identify the third victim whose bloodstains were also found in Kakkad's flat in Andheri (W), Crime Branch officers had last Wednesday acquired permission to carry out narco analysis on Palande and Shinde.

Palande and his accomplice Shinde are already facing trial for the murder of Anuj Tikku's father Arun Tikku and Kakkad. Police hope that the narco analysis could help them get some clues to find whether they murdered another person whose skull was recovered during the investigation of the two murders.u00a0