UP: Duo held for killing businessman, his wife in Meerut; accused inspired by 'Asur' web series
Meerut (UP), Aug 12: Two men were arrested here on Saturday in connection with the recent alleged murder of a businessman and his wife, officials said.
The accused said they committed the crime after being inspired by the 'Asur' web series, released in 2020, Senior Superintendent of Police Rohit Singh Sajwan said.
On Thursday, Dhan Kumar Jain (70), a resident of the Brahmapuri area, was killed while his wife Anju Jain (65) was seriously injured when they resisted a robbery bid by two men who broke into their house, Sajwan said.
The accused fled with cash and jewellery, he said.
Anju succumbed to her injuries on Friday during treatment, the police said.
The SSP said eight teams were formed to crack the case, which examined the CCTV footage, conducted electronic surveillance and also gathered inputs from informers, following which the two accused were nabbed.
The arrested persons have been identified as Priyank Sharma (25) alias Parush, a final year LLB student and his friend Yash Sharma alias Yashu (24), a Class 8 pass-out who works in a battery shop, the police said.
During interrogation, Priyank told the police that inspired by the 'Asur' web series, he looked up on YouTube ways to escape the police, the SSP said.
The accused added that they used gloves, masks and helmets to hide their identity and changed the number plate of the bike after committing the crime, the SSP said.
The duo chose an escape route where the CCTV cameras could not identify them, the police said.
A day before the incident, the accused had gone to the businessman's house on the pretext of looking for a room to rent, they added.
The SSP said a pistol, motorcycle, clothes, helmets and shoes worn during the commission of the crime, besides gold and silver jewellery and cash looted from the businessman's house have been recovered from the accused.
After the incident came to light, Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav had tried to corner the state government over the incident.
In a post on X, formerly Twitter, Yadav had said, "The murder of a businessman in Meerut by entering his house, looting and murderous attack on his wife is a heart-wrenching and extremely terrifying incident."
"Recession during the BJP government, corruption of officials, collection of donations by the ruling party and above all, the fear of criminals have completely killed the business in UP," he added.
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NEET student hangs self in Rajasthan's Sikar
Jaipur (PTI): A student preparing for the NEET examination allegedly committed suicide by hanging himself in a rented room in Rajasthan's Sikar on Friday, police said.
According to the police, the student allegedly hanged himself from a ceiling fan using his sister's scarf while one sister was attending coaching classes and the other was in the bathroom.
He had appeared in the NEET UG exam 2026, which was cancelled due to paper leak, they said.
Udyog Nagar SHO Rajesh Kumar said that the deceased, identified as Pradeep Meghwal, was a resident of Kanika ki Dhani village in Jhunjhunu's Gudha Gaudji area.
He had been living in a rented room in Sikar's Jaldhari Nagar area with his two sisters while preparing for NEET over the last three years.
His elder sister later found him hanging and informed the landlord and police after bringing him down, officials said.
The SHO said the body was kept at SK Hospital mortuary, and a postmortem had not been conducted.
The student's father, Rajesh Kumar Meghwal, told police that Pradeep's NEET examination had gone well and the family was expecting him to score around 650 marks.
Former Rajasthan deputy chief minister Sachin Pilot expressed grief over the incident and linked it to anxiety among students after reports of irregularities and paper leaks in NEET 2026.
Pilot said repeated paper leak incidents and cancellation of examinations were affecting students' mental health and demanded a time-bound investigation and strict action against those responsible.
