India, Jan. 4 -- The brutal daylight murder of Shiv Sena party worker Mangesh Sadashiv Kalokhe last month was a pre-planned contract killing worth Rs.20 lakh, driven by personal and political rivalry, the Raigad police said on Saturday.

Twelve people, including two women, have been arrested so far in the case, officers said. The police are still searching for one more suspect, whose identity has not been disclosed. "Efforts are on to secure the custody of another suspect," said Raigad superintendent of police Anchal Dalal.

Kalokhe, a resident of Saibaba Nagar in Khopoli, was hacked to death on December 26 near the Jaya Bar junction in the Vihari area, shortly after dropping his daughters off at school.

According to the police, Kalokhe ...