Woman, lover kill her husband in Meerut; try to pass it off as snakebite
Meerut, Apr 17 (PTI): A man was killed allegedly by his wife and her lover who later placed a live venomous snake under his body to cover up the crime, police said on Thursday.
The post-mortem report blew the lid off their plot as it showed that the man had been strangled. The woman, Ravita (27), and her lover Amardeep (19), who was a friend of her husband, have been arrested, according to a police statement.
Circle Officer Abhishek Kumar Patel said the incident took place in Akbarpur Sadat village under the Behsuma police station area.
"Amit Kashyap (30), alias Mickey, was found dead at his home on Sunday morning. A venomous snake was found near his bed, leading to the assumption that he had died of a snakebite," Patel told PTI.
However, the post-mortem report stated that he died due to asphyxiation, he said.
"Following the report, we initiated a detailed investigation into the case," the officer said.
According to police sources, Amit married Ravita eight years ago and the couple had three children. Amit worked as a mason along with Amardeep, who eventually got involved in an illicit relationship with Ravita.
Tensions between Amit and Ravita began after he found out about his wife's affair. There were frequent arguments between the two. Ravita told Amardeep about these arguments and he stopped working with her husband around five months ago, the sources said.
The duo told police that about a week ago, they decided to eliminate Amit and make it look like he died due to snakebite, Circle Officer Patel said.
On April 12, Amardeep bought a snake for Rs 1,000 from a snake charmer and hid it in a bag, he said.
Later that night, after Amit had fallen asleep, Ravita called Amardeep to her house and the two strangled her husband to death. Then they put the live snake under Amit's body to make it look like he was bitten by the reptile while he was asleep, the officer added.
"The snake was trapped under the body and bit it several times, which led to the confusion during the preliminary investigation," Patel said.
Ravita and Amardeep have been taken into custody. Further legal proceedings in the case are underway, he said.
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CM Siddaramaiah alleges ‘criminal conspiracy’ in Sringeri recount, vows legal action
Bengaluru (PTI): Alleging a “criminal conspiracy” by BJP candidate D N Jeevaraj in the Sringeri Assembly poll recounting, Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah on Tuesday said the outcome was manipulated after valid postal ballot votes in favour of Congress leader T D Raje Gowda were tampered with during the recounting process.
Following a Karnataka High Court order on an election petition filed by Jeevaraj, challenging Raje Gowda’s election, the reverification and recounting were conducted on Saturday.
After the reverification and recount of postal ballots for the Sringeri Assembly constituency, votes polled in favour of Raje Gowda were reduced by 255, the returning officer said.
A report on the matter has been submitted to the Election Commission of India for further action, the officer added.
Congress leader Raje Gowda had won the 2023 Assembly polls from Sringeri by 201 votes, defeating his nearest rival Jeevaraj.
Addressing a press conference in Bengaluru, Siddaramaiah said the High Court had directed the recounting of postal ballots and that irregularities were noticed during the exercise conducted on May 2.
“This is a clear case of criminal conspiracy,” Siddaramaiah said, alleging that valid votes cast in favour of Raje Gowda were altered after being accepted by counting agents of all parties, including Congress, BJP, and JD(S).
He claimed that during the recounting of postal ballots, 255 votes were initially accepted as valid by all agents but were later tampered with by subordinate officials.
“There is a second mark on the votes polled in favour of Raje Gowda. They had accepted these as valid votes. Subsequently, another mark was made by officials. This is a clear case of criminal conspiracy,” he said.
When asked who was behind the alleged conspiracy, the CM replied, “It was hatched by Jeevaraj and others. It is planned.”
Siddaramaiah further alleged that the returning officer acted improperly by declaring the result despite the presence of an Election Commission observer during the recounting.
“Immediately after the counting, the returning officer announced the result. He should not have done so; this is against the law,” he said.
He pointed out that Raje Gowda had originally won by 201 votes, but after the recounting, the BJP candidate was declared the winner by 52 votes.
“The BJP has committed a criminal act of conspiracy. This is not vote chori but vote dacoity,” he alleged.
The CM said a police complaint had already been filed by Raje Gowda’s election agent, Sudhir Kumar, and emphasised the need for electoral integrity.
“We want transparency and free and fair elections. That is what our Constitution mandates,” he added.
Stating that the government would pursue legal remedies, Siddaramaiah said, “We are preparing an appeal challenging the returning officer’s announcement in a court of law.”
Responding to a separate query on elections in other states, the CM said there appeared to be an anti-incumbency factor in West Bengal, while results in Tamil Nadu were “surprising,” adding that Vijay’s party was emerging as the largest there.
Following the victory of party candidates in Bagalkote and Davanagere South, Siddaramaiah expressed confidence about future electoral prospects in Karnataka.
“Even in 2028, we will win the Assembly elections. We will come back,” the CM said.
Siddaramaiah added that he would order a forensic examination into the alleged tampering of postal ballots.
