What was initially thought to be a tragic incident of a young man collapsing during Navratri pooja after an alleged heart attack at his home has now turned into a chilling murder investigation in Uttar Pradesh’s Bijnor.
Deepak Kumar, a 29-year-old railway technician, on Friday collapsed during a religious ceremony. After his death, his wife told family members that it was a heart attack, a TOI report stated.
The man’s grieving relatives, who were shocked by their son’s sudden death but not suspicious, began making preparations for a quiet farewell.
However, things took a dark turn when the family insisted that since Deepak Kumar was a government employee, an autopsy should be conducted before performing the last rites, the publication said.
The results of the postmortem then revealed a sinister crime -Deepak had been strangled.
Police quickly moved in and arrested Deepak’s 27-year-old wife, Shivani, on Sunday for allegedly killing him with the help of an unidentified accomplice.
Quest for Deepak’s job: Victim’s family claims
The motive, as per Deepak’s family, seems to be a desire to claim her husband’s railway job after his death.
“A case has been registered against Shivani and an unknown person, and legal action will be taken based on the evidence,” TOI quoted Bijnor SP (city) Sanjeev Vajpayee as saying.
Deepak, who is originally from Mukrandpur village in UP’s Bijnor married Shivani on June 17, 2023. The couple had a six-month-old son and were living together in a rented house in Najibabad’s Adarsh Nagar colony.
Before joining the railways in March 2023, Deepak served in the CRPF in Manipur.
Meanwhile, Deepak’s brother claimed there had been long-standing tensions between Shivani and her in-laws.
“She even used to beat her mother-in-law,” Piyush, the victim’s brother, told the police.
Deepak’s mother, Pushpa, also confirmed their fraught relationship and added, “She killed him with someone’s help to get his job.”