Image copyright Press Trust of India Image caption Datta Phuge was a money lender 
 
 An Indian man who bought one of the world's most expensive shirts made entirely of gold has been allegedly battered to death, police said. 
 
 Datta Phuge shot into the global limelight in 2013 when he bought a shirt made with more than 3kg of gold and worth $250,000 (£186,943). 
 
 A money lender based in western Pune, Mr Phuge was called "the gold man". 
 
 Four persons have been detained for questioning. Police suspect a dispute over money led to the murder. 
 
 The police said some 12 people attacked Mr Phuge, 48, in Pune on Thursday night. 
 
 One of the suspects had invited Mr Phuge and his 22-year-old son to celebrate a birthday at an open ground in Dighi area when the men attacked him with stones and a sharp weapon. 
 
 Police said the son had witnessed his father being murdered and had been spared by the alleged killers. 
 
 "However, we are investigating how Mr Phuge reached the open ground where he was murdered," Dighi police station inspector Navnath Ghogare told the Press Trust of India news agency. 
 
 Image copyright AFP Image caption Mr Phuge often wore gold all over his body 
 
 Mr Phuge often wore gold all over his body: his knuckles, neck, and wrists were weighed down by signet rings, chunky bracelets, and a medallion. 
 
 "Some people ask me why I'm wearing so much gold but it was my dream. People have different aspirations. Some elite people want to own an Audi or Mercedes, and have big cars. I chose gold," he told the BBC in 2013. ||||| This article is over 2 years old 
 
 Datta Phuge, who ordered a shirt made from 14,000 pieces of 22-carat gold in 2013, was reportedly attacked by 12 assailants 
 
 An Indian businessman who made headlines in 2013 for purchasing a shirt made entirely of gold has been beaten to death in western India, according to a report on Friday. 
 
 
 
 Datta Phuge gained fame when he ordered a customised gold shirt worth 12.7 million rupees, around $240,000 at the time. 
 
 It was made up of 14,000 pieces of 22-carat gold, weighed 3.32 kilogrammes (7.3 pounds) and was put together by 15 craftsmen over 16 days. 
 
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 The hefty garment earned Phuge – a money lender from Pune in Maharashtra state – the moniker “gold man”, a title he cherished. 
 
 Police said Phuge, believed to be in his mid-40s, was attacked and killed by 12 assailants brandishing stones and sharp weapons on Thursday night after one of the suspects had invited him for a party, according to the Press Trust of India news agency. 
 
 “As per preliminary information, Phuge and his son were invited by one of the suspects, who know each other, to celebrate a birthday. However, we are investigating how Phuge reached the open ground where he was murdered,” PTI quoted local police inspector Navnath Ghogare as saying. 
 
 Phuge’s 22-year-old son witnessed his father being murdered and had been spared by the alleged killers, he added, saying police suspected the motive could have been a dispute over a money transaction. Four suspects have been detained. 
 
 Phuge loved gold and the fame that came with his shirt. 
 
 “Everybody knows me as the ‘gold man’ in the whole region. Other rich people spend one crore (10 million rupees) to buy Audis or Mercedes, to buy what they like. What crime have I done? I just love gold,” he said in 2013. 
 
 “Gold has always been my passion since a young age. I’ve always worn gold as jewellery in the form of bracelets, rings, chains,” he added. 
 
 India is the world’s biggest consumer of gold, with purchases an essential part of religious festivals and weddings.
– An Indian businessman famous for flaunting his wealth with a shirt made entirely of gold was beaten to death in what cops believe was a dispute over money. Police say Datta Phuge, a 48-year-old moneylender in the city of Pune, was killed by a group of around a dozen men armed with sticks and stones after being lured to a fake birthday party Thursday night, AFP reports. The attackers spared Phuge's 22-year-old son, who witnessed the murder, police say. It's not clear whether Phuge, known as "gold man," was wearing his famous $250,000 shirt, which weighed 7 pounds and consisted of 14,000 pieces of 22-carat gold. "Some people ask me why I'm wearing so much gold but it was my dream. People have different aspirations," he told the BBC in 2013. "Some elite people want to own an Audi or Mercedes, and have big cars. I chose gold."