Buxar murder case solved: Father, brother killed woman

PATNA/BUXAR: A week after the charred body of a 23-year-old woman was recovered with bullet injury in her head, the Buxar police on Tuesday claimed that it was a case of “honour killing”. Police arrested the deceased’s father, mother and eldest brother in this connection on Monday night.
The deceased was identified as Indu Kumari, a resident of Dinara in Rohtas district.Her body was recovered from the outskirts of Kukudha village under Itadhi police station area in the adjoining Buxar district on Tuesday last. Her younger sister identified the pink-colour sandals the deceased was wearing at the time of her death.
DIG (Shahabad range) Rakesh Kumar Rathi said Indu was killed by her father Mahendra Prasad Gupta, a retired Army jawan, and eldest brother Mukesh Kumar with the help of three distant relatives as she had refused to live with her husband after marriage last year. On her return from her in-laws’ house after ‘gauna’ (second marriage), she had eloped with her boyfriend.
Mahendra had to get his second daughter married to his son-in-law Surya Bhan Gupta of Dumraon in Buxar district a few months back. He also tried to persuade Indu for remarriage, but she did not agree. Then he decided to eliminate Indu who had allegedly brought the family into disrepute, the DIG, who is monitoring the police investigation, said. When asked, he said there is no legal term like “honour killing”. “The woman was killed for defying her parents’ advice. This is a murder in cold blood,” he added.
Around 10.30pm on December 2, Mahendra along with his son Mukesh took the girl on a bike to Kukudha, about 15km from Dinara, and killed her with the help of three other distant relatives, including a resident of Dhansoi village under Itadhi police station area. The girl was first shot at close-range and then her body was set on fire by using paddy straw strewn in the field after harvesting, Buxar SP Upendra Nath Verma said.
The SP said Mahendra was at present employed as a security guard at the Hardia branch of Allahabad Bank near Dhansoi Bazar in Buxar district. Mahendra, his wife Sharmila Devi and their son Mukesh have already been arrested for their involvement in the crime, he said, adding that raids were on to nab the other accused.
“After her sister disclosed that the sandals belonged to Indu, the mother-son duo confessed to the crime. The mother knew what was happening with her daughter,” the SP said.
He denied any rape with the deceased, as was earlier claimed by a doctor who had conducted the postmortem. “The postmortem report had not confirmed rape. The postmortem was conducted for the second time under the supervision of a medical board, which denied rape with the victim,” the SP said.
DIG Rathi, however, said police would proceed in the case on the basis of scientific evidences to get the offenders prosecuted. “I have directed the investigating officer of the case to conduct DNA test of the mother-father duo to ascertain the deceased’s identity as well as their involvement in the crime,” he told this newspaper over phone. The viscera of the deceased was also preserved for forensic test. “We have sufficient evidence to establish the involvement of her close relatives in the crime,” he added. The police have, however, failed to recover the weapon which was used in the crime.