CBI probing Dileep’s role in Kalabhavan Mani’s death

Thrissur: In a new development in the episode of actor Dileep’s arrest over the assault case of an actress, actor Kalabhavan Mani’s brother has accused Dileep of having a role in Mani’s death.

Talking to the media on Thursday, Mani’s brother R L V Ramakrishnan alleged the two actors were involved in land dealings.

“I have informed the CBI about it. They have begun an investigation into the matter,” Ramakrishnan said.

“Dileep and Mani were involved in land business in places like Rajakkad and Munnar. I had told the Kerala police about it. But they probed Mani’s death without considering the land dealings,” he said.

Dileep was closely related with Mani. But he visited Mani's residence only once after the latter’s death. He also did not help us with the police investigation,” Ramakrishnan added.

Earlier, film director Baiju Kottarakkara had said that a woman phoned him and revealed some vital information about the land dealings between Dileep and Mani. He told a news channel that the woman had told him the two actors were not in a good term lately because of conflicts over the business.

The CBI had in May taken over the probe into mysterious death of Kalabhavan Mani, following a direction from the High Court. The agency' had initially taken a stand that it cannot investigate the case due to workload.

Mani, a popular actor in Malayalam, Tamil and Telugu films, who was undergoing treatment for a liver ailment at a hospital in Kochi, was found in a serious condition at his farmhouse at Chalakudy.

He later died at the hospital on March 6 last year.

However, after traces of chlorpyrifos, a toxic pesticide was found in his viscera sample and traces of methyl alcohol were found in his blood, his family members demanded a CBI probe.