A woman killed her 50-year-old estranged husband in Karnataka before disposing of his body 30 km away with the help of her lover, police said while announcing the duo’s arrests in the murder case.
The incident took place on Tuesday in Kadashettihalli village of Tumakuru district’s Tiptur taluk, where Shankaramurthy lived alone in a farmhouse. He became the victim of a conspiracy allegedly orchestrated by his wife Sumangala and her lover Nagaraju, from Karadalusante village, who both viewed him as an obstacle to their relationship.
According to the police, Sumangala, who was employed as a cook at Kalpataru Girls’ Hostel in Tiptur, had thrown chili powder into her husband’s eyes and beaten him with a stick before pressing her foot against his neck until he died. After the murder, the duo allegedly placed Shankaramurthy’s body in a gunny sack, transported it approximately 30 km away, and dumped it into a well in the Dandinashivara police station limits in Turuvekere taluk, hoping to permanently conceal their crime.
The investigation in what was initially a missing-person case registered at the Nonavinakere police station took a crucial turn when officers discovered traces of chili powder and signs of struggle on Shankaramurthy’s bed. Further investigation, including the interrogation of Sumangala and analysis of her call detail records, unravelled the murder plot, the police said, adding that she confessed to the crime.
A police officer said that Shankaramurthy and Sumangala had fought many times over her relationship with Nagaraju. Six months ago, Sumangala separated from her husband and conducted her daughter’s marriage without informing him. Enraged by this, Shankaramurthy had threatened to kill her, the officer added.
