New Delhi, (Samajweekly) A woman, who along with her neighbour and a juvenile, killed her 65-year-old mother, with aim to sell the house and move to a better accommodation, has been arrested, a Delhi Police official said on Friday.
The accused were identified as Chintamani, 30, Ashok Sharma, 50, and the minor, 17.
Chintamani and Sharma are residents of Nehru Vihar in the Dayalpur area in north Delhi.
Sharma works as a property dealer, and Chintamani, in collaboration with Sharma, devised the plan to murder her mother. They enlisted the help of the juvenile, who was employed at a motor mechanic shop.
On September 27, a PCR call was received at Dayalpur police station at 12:15 a.m., reporting the murder of a woman. Upon investigation, it was revealed that Shivkala had been killed inside her general store, which also served as her bedroom on the ground floor of a two-story house situated on a 25 square yards plot.
“Her jewelry remained intact, but signs of a struggle were evident at the crime scene. The entry appeared non-confrontational,” Deputy Commissioner of Police, Northeast, Joy Tirkey said.
During the post-mortem examination, the doctor determined that the victim had been murdered a day earlier, around 10:15 p.m. on September 26. “She had sustained 25 sharp and blunt injuries to her head, face, neck, and other parts of her body. The deceased lived alone and had three married daughters,” said the DCP.
As part of the investigation, the police scrutinised CCTV footage in the area and identified a suspicious boy.
“The boy was subsequently located and questioned. He disclosed that Chintamani and Sharma had promised him Rs 2 lakh to kill Shivkala,” said the DCP.
On the day, he had lingered in the area until it was time for Shivkala to close her shop. “Just before she closed up, he entered and attacked her with a pair of scissors and a heavy iron rod. He fled the scene after Shivkala succumbed to her injuries,” said the DCP.
Chintamani resided a few houses away from her mother, Shivkala, and lived on rent. “She was facing significant financial difficulties and had been married for 13 years. Her husband worked as a tailor, and they had an 11-year-old daughter and a seven-year-old son,” said the DCP.
As per interrogtaion, she believed that by eliminating her elderly mother, she could move into her mother’s house. “Her plan was to sell the house through property dealer Sharma and relocate to better accommodation. She shared her scheme with Sharma, who agreed to it as he stood to make a profit from the house sale,” said the DCP.
“They enlisted the minor boy, who worked as a motorcycle mechanic, by promising him Rs. 2 lakh and cautioned him not to reveal the plan to anyone,” said the DCP.
“Both Chintamani and Sharma have been arrested, while the minor boy will be presented before the Juvenile Justice Board. The accused will be taken into police custody for further investigation,” the DCP added.
