In a chilling echo of recent heinous crimes in Uttar Pradesh, a woman and her lover have been arrested for allegedly murdering her husband, who had returned from Dubai just ten days prior. The dismembered remains of the victim were discovered stuffed inside a suitcase abandoned in a field, police confirmed on Sunday.
The deceased has been identified as 38-year-old Naushad Ahmed, a native of Bhatauli village. His identity was established through an airline tag still attached to the suitcase containing his body, which was found by a farmer in Patkhauli village, approximately 55 kilometers from Ahmed's home.
According to Additional Superintendent of Police Arvind Verma, when police initially visited Naushad's residence, his wife, Razia, claimed he had gone out the previous night. However, the presence of bloodstains and another suitcase within the house aroused suspicion. Upon further questioning, Razia reportedly confessed to the murder, implicating her nephew, Ruman, as her accomplice.
Police investigations revealed that the murder allegedly took place around 2 am. Razia, Ruman, and his friend Himanshu are accused of executing the crime, which involved chopping Ahmed's body into two parts before stuffing it into the suitcase and transporting it to the remote field for disposal.
"Within six hours, our team traced the barcode on the airline tag and identified the victim," stated ASP Verma. "Razia has been arrested, and the murder weapons -- an axe, a chopper, and a pestle -- have been recovered." Authorities are currently searching for the absconding suspects, Ruman and Himanshu.
Naushad's sister has alleged that Razia and Ruman were involved in an illicit affair and has demanded stringent punishment for the accused. The deceased is survived by his six-year-old daughter.
This disturbing incident brings to mind two recent spousal murders in Meerut that had sent shockwaves across the nation. In one case, a former merchant navy officer, Saurabh Rajput, was allegedly drugged and stabbed to death by his wife and her lover, who then dismembered his body and concealed the remains in a drum filled with cement. In another horrifying incident, Amit Kashyap was allegedly strangled by his wife and her lover, who then attempted to stage his death as a snakebite.
The swift action of the Gorakhpur police in identifying the victim and apprehending one of the accused offers a glimmer of hope for justice in this latest gruesome crime. The investigation is ongoing, and authorities are determined to bring all those involved to account.
(PTI inputs)