Pune police are investigating a suspected cyber-extortion angle in the death of 22-year-old Accenture employee Shikhar Saxena after his father alleged that a caller posing as a police officer threatened to implicate him in a false drug case and demanded money. An FIR was registered on October 14 against a man identified as Ajay Kumar Bhatia and another unidentified person.
Saxena, originally from Haridwar in Uttarakhand, had moved to Pune in July for work and joined Accenture at Magarpatta in Hadapsar. He moved into paying-guest accommodation in Kharadi on September 1. According to the complaint filed by his father, Kumargaurav Saxena, 46, the alleged threats began shortly before the family lost contact with him.
The complaint states that Shikhar’s mother received a call on September 30 from a man who demanded to speak to her son. When she said Shikhar was in Pune, the caller disconnected. His father later contacted the number, and the man allegedly introduced himself as Ajay Kumar Bhatia. He reportedly claimed to be Shikhar’s friend and initially said he wanted a PDF document.
During another conversation, the caller allegedly said he had met Shikhar while playing PUBG online. The father disputed this account, telling police that his son did not play the game. The family also learnt that the same caller had contacted one of Shikhar’s acquaintances to obtain his current phone number, according to the FIR.
The father alleged that the caller later claimed to be a police sub-inspector posted in Sector 29, Gurgaon, Haryana. He purportedly said a complaint had been received accusing Shikhar of supplying or selling drugs to women in Pune, and threatened him with arrest while demanding an active phone number. The allegation of drug involvement came from the caller; the FIR records the family’s claim that Shikhar was being threatened with implication in a false case.
Unable to reach Shikhar, the family asked his maternal uncle, who lives in Pune, to check on him. The accommodation owner reportedly said Shikhar had left at around 5.30 p.m. on September 30. After an unsuccessful search, the uncle approached Kharadi police, where a missing-person case was registered under Section 140(3) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. The family was informed of Shikhar’s death the following morning. He was taken to Sassoon General Hospital, where he was declared dead, according to the complaint.
The family later examined Shikhar’s laptop and found WhatsApp activity dated September 29, transfers to different bank accounts and screenshots of those transactions allegedly sent to Bhatia. They also reported finding suspicious chats. The FIR does not specify the total amount allegedly transferred.
The case has been registered under Sections 108, 308(6), 351(4) and 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, covering allegations including abetment of suicide, extortion-related threats, criminal intimidation and acts committed with common intention. Police Sub-Inspector Santosh Mhetre said investigators were examining the possibility of a cyber scam while pursuing other leads.
Senior Police Inspector Sanjay Chavan, in-charge of Kharadi police station, said police were trying to unlock Shikhar’s password-protected mobile phone and establish how he first came into contact with the suspects. Chavan said preliminary findings indicated that the accused was not a police officer. Police are searching for the suspect, who is believed to be living outside Maharashtra. Investigators are also examining whether a later call from a person claiming to represent a courier office was connected to the earlier caller.
