Death-row convict arrested after 13 years on the run

 

By Sagaya Fernando | May 25, 2026

Ahmedabad, Gujarat, INDIA: A death-row convict who had been absconding for more than 13 years after jumping parole has been arrested by the Ahmedabad Crime Branch in connection with a sensational 1994 murder and robbery case that had shocked Gujarat.

The accused, identified as Satish Himmatlal Rupa Reliya alias Bhikhu alias Sanjay Thakkar, was convicted in the brutal killing of textile trader Arvind Shah at Neelam Hotel in Ahmedabad.

According to police, Reliya was the prime accused in Sessions Case No. 56 of 1995 and was sentenced to death by the Additional City Sessions Court in Ahmedabad in April 2000 under various provisions of the Indian Penal Code and the Bombay Police Act for murder, robbery and criminal conspiracy.

The case dates back to October 22, 1994, when Shah was allegedly lured to the hotel on the pretext of a discounted textile business deal. Investigators said the accused robbed the trader of cash and gold ornaments before murdering him inside the hotel room.

During the investigation, police found that the victim had been beheaded in an attempt to conceal his identity. Crime Branch officials said the severed head was allegedly packed in a bag and carried to Adalaj to destroy evidence and mislead investigators.

The gruesome nature of the crime had sent shockwaves across Ahmedabad and made the case one of the city’s most notorious murder investigations of the 1990s.

After his conviction and imprisonment, Reliya was granted parole in 2013. However, he failed to return to custody after the parole period ended and subsequently went underground.

Police said the convict managed to evade arrest for over a decade by frequently changing locations and using multiple fake identities to blend into different communities.

The Ahmedabad Crime Branch recently formed a dedicated tracking team to trace the fugitive. Using technical surveillance, intelligence inputs and sustained field operations, officers identified his hideout and arrested him in a carefully planned operation without any resistance.

Officials said the accused has now been sent back to judicial custody to face execution of the sentence awarded by the court.