Pune: In a chilling case that echoes a similar crime in Warje, where a wife orchestrated her husband's murder with the help of her lovers, Katraj police have uncovered a brutal case of spousal murder.
A woman, along with her lover, has been arrested for allegedly strangling her husband to death after staging the incident as a suicide.
The Bharati Vidyapeeth police have arrested Rani Gopinath Ingulkar, 32, and her lover Nitin Shankar Thakar, 45, for the murder of Rani's husband, Gopinath Balu Ingulkar, 37. The couple lived near the Dugad School in Katraj, Pune.
The crime came to light after Gopinath was found dead at his residence on September 23. Initially, Rani tried to convince authorities that her husband had died by suicide due to his ongoing struggle with diabetes.
According to Rani, Gopinath had been severely distressed by his illness and had expressed a desire to end his life. She claimed that on multiple occasions, he asked her to strangle him, supposedly unable to cope with the disease any longer. Taking her statements into account, the police initially registered the case as an accidental death and sent Gopinath’s body for a routine postmortem.
However, the narrative took a dark turn when the postmortem report confirmed that the cause of death was strangulation. The medical examination ruled out the possibility of self-strangulation, and suspicions immediately turned toward foul play.
During their investigation, the police discovered that Rani had been in a relationship with Nitin Thakar, a relative of the family. This new information prompted further questioning of Rani, during which she broke down and confessed to the murder.
According to her confession, she and Nitin had planned the murder as Gopinath had become an obstacle in their relationship. On the night of the crime, they strangled Gopinath to death.
Senior Police Inspector Dashrath Patil confirmed the arrests of both Rani and Nitin, stating that further investigations are underway. The case is now being handled by Assistant Police Inspector Dodmise.
