BJP MLA Byrathi Basavaraj, 64, and businessman-advocate A G Ajeeth Kumar, 48, who were arrested on February 12 by the CID unit of the Karnataka Police in connection with the July 15, 2025, murder of a realtor in Bengaluru, used elaborate measures to cover their tracks in the crime, the probe has found.The BJP MLA for K R Pura in Bengaluru and his associate, the businessman-advocate, who were remanded in the Bengaluru central prison on February 21 and February 19, respectively, at the end of their police custody, were also the lead conspirators in the plot to murder realtor V G Shivaprakash, alias Bikla Shiva, 44, the CID probe has found.The CID investigation in the murder case has revealed that the MLA and his associate attempted to cover their tracks in the murder conspiracy by using mobile phones of other associates while communicating with each other and with key gang members for organising and executing the murder, according to legal filings in the case.Bikla Shiva was hacked to death by a gang of eight to nine assailants outside his house on the busy Meanee Avenue in east Bengaluru at around 8.10 pm on July 15, 2025, over an alleged real estate dispute with close associates of Byrathi Basavaraj.Byrathi Basavaraj and Ajeeth Kumar, alias Malayali Ajeeth, are among those recently arrested in the murder case, where a chargesheet has been filed against 18 people who were arrested earlier in the course of the probe, including prime accused Jagadish P, alias Jaga, 45.The BJP MLA is the accused number 5, while Ajeeth Kumar is accused number 20, Jagadish P is accused number 1, and his close relative Kiran K is accused number 2 in the murder conspiracy executed with the use of local gang members as well as a hired gang from Malur in the neighbouring Kolar district.‘BJP MLA used phones of his PAs during murder conspiracy’Story continues below this adThe four-time MLA, who had set up a virtual fiefdom in the K R Pura region of Bengaluru by controlling the real estate business with the use of gangs operated by former gangsters Ajeeth Kumar and Jagadish P, communicated with the gang leaders using the mobile phones of three of his personal assistants, the CID has found.“The investigation has revealed that the witnesses in the case, the close aides of the accused A-5, Mr Hanumantu, Mr A K Manu and Mr Gangadhar, were in mobile contact with the accused A-1 and A-2 of the case,” the CID informed a special court last week.The CID has seized the mobile phones of the MLA as well as his PA since his arrest on February 12, sources said. Data from the mobile phones, including details of communication during the period of the murder conspiracy and later, which is reported to have been erased through formatting, is being forensically recovered, the sources said. The digital nature of the evidence has meant that it can be retrieved despite the accused having tried to cover their tracks.During the CID investigations last week, Byrathi Basavaraj was asked 258 questions regarding his role in the murder, and the MLA also gave a voluntary statement.Story continues below this adSources said there was a lot of contradiction between statements given by the MLA to the Bengaluru police on July 19, 2025, and July 23, 2025, when he claimed to have no association or knowledge of the murder victim or gang members like Jaga. The MLA was also evasive in his reply to many questions, saying he does not remember, does not know, or that he has no information, legal findings indicated.While the CID has used tower location data for cell phones used by the accused to establish their meetings for the murder conspiracy, the BJP MLA was evasive in replies to queries about being in the same place as Jaga, Kiran and Ajeeth on various dates, sources said.“During the investigation, it was learned that the accused was supporting accused A-1 and A-20 in their real estate business,” the CID has stated in court since the MLA’s arrest.“It has been found that A-1 and A-20, who were in contact with the other accused in connection with the murder, were in contact with the accused and were also involved in the murder conspiracy of the deceased Shivaprakash @ Bikla Shiva,” the CID has stated.Story continues below this adEarlier, the CID, during arguments for anticipatory bail pleas filed by the MLA in the Karnataka High Court and a special court, had presented evidence to show that he travelled to the Kumbh Mela at Prayagraj in UP between February 10-12, 2025, with Jaga and Ajeeth, and others, on the same airline ticket, in order to prove their close association.Byrathi Basavaraj was remanded to judicial custody till February 26 by a special court at the end of six days of police custody on February 21.‘Businessman-advocate associate of MLA removed CCTV footage’A G Ajeeth Kumar tried to cover his tracks in the Bikla Shiva murder conspiracy by removing CCTV footage of alleged conspiracy meetings held at his office ahead of the murder, the CID probe has found.The CID is also attempting to recover deleted data from his mobile phones.Story continues below this ad“It is stated by the IO in the requisition that the custody of accused is required for collection of the CCTV footage of the places of conspiracy, which were stated to have been collected and secured by the accused and also the mirror images of the mobile data extracts of the mobile phones of accused No.20 seized during investigation have to be confronted and interrogated with the accused,” a special court noted while rejecting a plea for extending the police custody of Ajeeth Kumar on February 19.The CID probe has found that the businessman who registered as an advocate in 2023 did not provide his proper details while registering as an advocate and that the mobile phone number of an employee was provided for registration, and that the same number was used for communications during the Bikla Shiva murder conspiracy in July 2025.The CID probe has also found that the businessman-advocate used the credit card of an employee to make payments for various purposes, including travel and flight tickets for Jaga, and reimbursed the employee for credit card usage.The businessman advocate was not named initially in the murder case, unlike the BJP MLA, but his name emerged during the investigations, with several of the arrested accused claiming that they ventured into the murder conspiracy with the confidence that they had the backing of the advocate in the event of criminal proceedings, as per legal proceedings in the case.Story continues below this adAjeeth Kumar, in fact, appeared as the advocate on record for Jaga when an anticipatory bail plea was filed in the high court and special court soon after the murder and prior to his arrest in August 2025. Previously, he appeared in a bail plea for an accused in a 2021 murder case, where bail was granted on June 23, 2025.“Accused No.20 was concealing his identity by not providing his correct office address or mobile number. Copy of Aadhar Card or PAN Card was not given,” by the accused while enrolling as an advocate, the CID told a special court, which earlier granted interim protection to Ajeeth Kumar from arrest on account of his credentials as an advocate—before withdrawing the protection on February 12, 2026.“Even otherwise, several allegations are levelled that accused No.20 never used to speak directly with the accused persons. In some of the statements recorded under Sec.161 of Cr.P.C., it is stated that during the course of hatching a conspiracy by other accused persons, they had decided to take legal assistance if required after the incident from present accused No.20,” the special court noted in its February 12 order.The CID told a special court recently that “accused No.1 and accused No.20 were both involved in a murder case in the year 2008 and from that point of time, they were known to each other and were doing the real estate business together”.Story continues below this adThe special court noted that “it is submitted that only recently the accused No.20 had got himself enrolled as Advocate on the rolls of the Karnataka State Bar Council and more precisely in the year 2023 and prior to that he was a rowdy sheeter, which was subsequently set aside by the Hon’ble High Court of Karnataka through its kind order in the year 2017”.The court also noted that the CID was seeking to question Ajeeth Kumar not as a witness but “on the ground of taking an active role in the criminal case”.The special court also referred to the CID’s “contention that accused No.5 (MLA Basavaraj) was the one who had masterminded the entire incident and in fact the accused No.20 (Ajeeth Kumar), who was a rowdy sheeter earlier, had played an active role in this regard”.