A court in Himachal Pradesh remanded the hotelier accused of killing an officer conducting a Supreme Court-mandated anti-encroachment drive in Kasauli, in five-day police custody,India Today reported.

The police have also recovered the weapon that Vijay Singh Thakur used to allegedly murder Shail Bala Sharma, reported ANI. “The accused Vijay Singh had thrown the weapon near Shimla Kalka railway track on the same day,” a police officer involved in the investigation told Hindustan Times. Since the weapon has been The police are likely to recreate the crime scene to establish the charges.

Shail Bala Sharma, an assistant town and country planner, was shot dead on Tuesday. On Wednesday, the Supreme Court took suo moto cognisance of the incident. The top court criticised the state government for not providing adequate security to the officials.

Thakur had been on the run since the incident. On Thursday, he was arrested from Mathura district of Uttar Pradesh. He had shaved his moustache and trimmed his hair to conceal his identity, reported The Tribune.