Sitapur (The Hawk): The man who allegedly strangled his wife, hacked her body into pieces, and then dumped it in a field with a friend has been detained by the Sitapur police.
According to the police, the accused, 46-year-old Pankaj Maurya, has admitted to the crime. On November 8, the wife's body was discovered.
The companion who supported the offender has also been detained by the police.
For ten years, Pankaj was wed to Barabanki resident Jyoti, 38. He recently began to believe Jyoti was unfaithful and made plans to get rid of her.
According to Sitapur Superintendent of Police (SP), G. Sushil Chandrabhan, on November 8 body parts of a woman, later identified as Jyoti, were found in a field in Gulheria hamlet, under the jurisdiction of Rampur Kalan police station.
The woman's body, right hand, and legs were found in the field by the police. We needed to determine the identify of the woman whose body parts were found, according to forensic experts, the SP stated.
When a lady's deformed face was discovered a few days later, the police enlisted the help of professionals to create a sketch, copies of which were then distributed across Barabanki, Sitapur, Hardoi, Rae Bareli, Lucknow, and Sultanpur to help identify the woman.
"After a few days, one Malti Singh of Barabanki, who claimed to be the mother of the dead, approached us," said Yadhvendra Yadav, Circle Officer in Sidhauli. She quickly recognised her daughter Jyoti's clothes when we showed her the ones found on the body. On November 20, after he had been absent since November 15, we located her husband Pankaj.
Pankaj was unable to provide a plausible explanation for his wife's disappearance when probed about her location. He admitted killing her while being questioned.
He was formally detained on Tuesday when a police squad entered his home and found blood-stained clothing and a knife with a sharp edge.
Pankaj admitted to the police that he used to work late shifts in a pharmacy and travel back home at odd hours.
"I learned from my neighbours that Jyoti had started doing drugs and was frequently seen with males. After an argument on the evening of November 8, Pankaj said, "I tried to reach out to her family, but they, too, were helpless. I killed Jyoti and sliced her body in many parts with the assistance of my friend Dujan Pasi.
The remains were scattered in a field some seven kilometres from the house. Before committing the crime, Pankaj sent his son, two daughters, and two granddaughters to live with his uncle.
(Inputs from Agencies)
