BHOPAL: A man in Madhya Pradesh’s Bhind district allegedly murdered his live-in partner, a nursing officer with the district health department, and then filed a missing-person complaint and printed search notices to make it appear that he was looking for her.
The accused, Satya Prakash, alias Badshah Jatav, allegedly confessed to killing Snehlata Pandey during sustained questioning, investigating officer Amit Sikarwar said.
Pandey had been living with Satya Prakash for at least three years, and the couple had an 11-month-old son. The incident came to light after Satya Prakash allegedly portrayed himself as a worried partner searching for her in the Joshi Nagar area of Bhind.
According to the ongoing investigations, Snehlata, originally hailed from Nalanda in Bihar. Three years back she came to Bhind (MP) for pursuing the General Nursing and Midwifery (GNM) course. Satya Prakash worked at the same college where Snehlata was pursuing the course and both of them fell in love and subsequently became live-in partners.
Satya Prakash, however, concealed from Snehlata that he was already married, but had no child from the marriage, due to which he engaged in live-in relations with her for getting a child.
The police say the relationship with Snehlata caused frequent quarrels with his wife.
The alleged events began on October 8. Police say Prakash handed his son to his wife, then left with Snehlata, ambulance driver Rajveer Khanna and another associate, saying he was taking her to Kanpur for a trip.
On way back to Bhind, Satya Prakash allegedly murdered Snehlata and threw the body from the bridge over Yamuna River near Etawah (UP) into the Pachnada –the confluence of five rivers.
Once the case emerged during questioning, the Bhind City Kotwali police, Home Guards and an SDRF team began searching the river. For the past two days they have covered a 60-kilometre stretch from the confluence to Auraiya. The body has not been found.
“The biggest challenge is to find Snehlata’s body,” investigating officer Amit Sikarwar said, as investigators also try to establish what role others may have played in the crime. The accomplices’ involvement is so far alleged and not yet confirmed.