'Gave him so many pills, nothing happened' chats between wife, lover reveal plot to murder husband
New Delhi(PTI): Over 90 Instagram messages between a woman and her lover exposed a chilling murder plot involving the woman's husband in the Uttam Nagar area of Delhi's Dwarka, police sources said on Sunday.
Investigators are also looking into whether the woman used Instagram's disappearing messages feature to conceal her conversations from family members and in-laws, as she had been in a relationship with her lover for the past two years, sources added.
Karan (36) was allegedly killed by being drugged and electrocuted by his wife, Sushmita, and her lover, Rahul, who is also her brother-in-law.
The incident came to light on July 13 when a call was made to the PCR from Mata Rooprani Maggo Hospital, reporting Karan's death.
"Sushmita and her alleged lover, the son of Karan's uncle, were arrested after Karan's brother accessed the chats in which they discussed plans to kill him," Deputy Commissioner of Police (Dwarka) Ankit Kumar Singh said.
Karan's brother informed the police that he had already suspected Sushmita's behaviour and her closeness to Rahul.
According to preliminary investigations, Sushmita allegedly drugged Karan by giving him sleeping pills at their residence and waited for him to die.
"However, when he did not pass away as she expected, she started messaging Rahul," the source mentioned.
Investigations further revealed that Sushmita allegedly mixed around 15 sleeping pills into Karan's food on the night of July 12 and later called Rahul to come over to help electrocute her husband.
"After the murder, Sushmita allegedly rushed to her in-laws' house nearby, telling them that Karan had collapsed, which prompted them to take him to the hospital. He was brought to the hospital in an unresponsive state and declared dead with the medico-legal case (MLC) citing electrocution as the cause of death," said the source.
Another source, privy to the investigation, shared details of the messages exchanged between the two accused.
In one message, Sushmita wrote, "Itni goliyaan de chuki hoon, fir bhi kuch nahi ho raha... ab current hi dena padega" (I have already given him so many sleeping pills, yet nothing is happening... I think he needs to be electrocuted now).
In another message, Rahul replied -- "Uske haath pair tape se baandh dena, phir current lagana" (Tie up his hands and legs using tape, and then give him an electric shock).
The chats also revealed their frustration when their earlier attempt to kill Karan using pills did not succeed.
"Kitni der current lagana padega ki woh mare?" (How long do I need to give the shock for him to die?), another message by Sushmita read.
Some chats also revealed that they were planning Karan's murder for quite a while, as they had previously drugged him to check how long it would take for him to pass out. The duo had been researching various methods to end his life, sources added.
"We are interrogating both of them. They have both admitted that they had been planning this for many weeks and confessed to attempting to kill him earlier as well," the source added.
Meanwhile, further investigations are underway, and forensic reports are pending. Both accused have been charged under sections related to murder and criminal conspiracy, DCP Ankit Kumar Singh said.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Mamata visits Bhabanipur EVM strong room, warns against counting irregularities
Kolkata (PTI): West Bengal Chief Minister and TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee early Friday warned against any attempt to tamper with the counting process, hours after she visited an EVM strong room in Bhabanipur, alleging possible malpractice.
Banerjee, who emerged around 12:07 am after spending nearly four hours at the counting centre for her Bhabanipur constituency housed in Sakhawat Memorial School in south Kolkata, said only one person would be allowed inside the designated counting area.
"Either the candidate or one agent can stay upstairs. I have also suggested installation of a CCTV camera for the media," she told reporters.
Stressing the need for transparency, she said, "It is essential to maintain transparency. People’s votes must be protected. I rushed here after receiving complaints. The central forces initially did not allow me to enter."
Sounding a stern note ahead of the May 4 counting, she added, "If there is any plan to tamper with the counting process, it will not be tolerated."
On Thursday evening, Banerjee had reached the Bhabanipur Assembly segment counting centre, which houses the strong room for EVMs used in the April 29 polling, citing suspicion of tampering with the machines.
She entered the premises along with her election agent and remained inside for hours, even as Kolkata Mayor and TMC candidate from the Kolkata Port segment Firhad Hakim reached the spot but could not meet her.
"I reached here upon learning that the chief minister has arrived. But I couldn’t meet her since she was already inside the premises, exercising her right as a candidate to visit strong rooms. I wasn’t allowed there. I will not be able to confirm what exactly is transpiring inside," Hakim said.
The development coincided with protests by TMC candidates Kunal Ghosh and Shashi Panja outside the Khudiram Anushilan Kendra in north Kolkata, where they staged a sit-in alleging irregularities and possible tampering of EVMs stored in strong rooms, leading to face-offs between TMC and BJP supporters.
Earlier in a video message, Banerjee had urged party leaders, workers and polling agents to maintain a 24-hour vigil on EVM strong rooms, alleging that the BJP could attempt to tamper with the machines before counting begins.
Her remarks come amid heightened political tension in the state following a fiercely contested Assembly election, with parties closely monitoring arrangements and raising concerns over transparency.
