Two cousins were arrested in Junnar taluka on the charge of murdering a 20-year-old youth on August 2 and disposing of his body in a gorge at Phalode village in Ambegaon taluka, located about 110 km from Pune. The Pune Rural police revealed that the crime stemmed from a land dispute. The murder case was uncovered during the investigation of a missing person's report filed by the victim's father, Nikhil Gholap, on August 7 with the Otur police station. Assistant inspector Lahu Thate led a police team that apprehended the suspects, Abhishek Gholap (21) and Jitendra Gholap (31), residents of Watkhale village in Junnar taluka. They face charges under sections 103 (murder), 61 (criminal conspiracy), and 238 (causing disappearance of evidence of offence) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). The Ghodegaon police found Nikhil's badly decomposed body on August 15, which was later identified by his relatives through photographs and clothing. Nikhil's father notified the police on August 7 that his son had been missing since August 1 and that his phone was unreachable. The suspects actively cooperated with the authorities in search efforts, even seeking assistance from local politicians. After tracing their location to Junnar, the duo was taken into custody for questioning, where they eventually confessed to the murder during interrogation. The investigation officer, Nadeem Tadvi, stated that the victim's family had a longstanding land dispute with the suspects' family.The arrested pair stated that the victim, Nikhil, had been harassing and mistreating them for several months. They were allegedly driven to plot Nikhil's elimination due to this ongoing harassment, Tadvi recounted. According to Tadvi, Nikhil resided alone in his Vatkhale home as his parents had relocated to Rajgurunagar for work. "On the evening of August 1, the pair lured Nikhil from the Junnar bus stop by pretending to take him to the Bhimashankar temple. Along the way, they bought alcohol for Nikhil," Tadvi explained. Upon arriving at Phalode village in Ambegaon taluka, the suspects coerced Nikhil into drinking alcohol. Subsequently, they escorted Nikhil, who was intoxicated, near a hill. Once Nikhil realized they were not heading towards Bhimashankar, he began verbally abusing them. "The pair then struck him with a large stone and disposed of his body in a nearby ravine. Additionally, they discarded Nikhil's cellphone into the Kukadi river," Tadvi elaborated.