PALANPUR: It could very well be termed as a cold-blooded murder. A chartered accountant (CA) in Deesa town of Banaskantha was arrested on Friday for killing his wife with help of his friend and making it appear as an accident to claim Rs 60 lakh insurance money.
The accused Lalit Mali (29) was on Saturday remanded to six days in police custody for killing Daksha (27), whom he had got insured just three months before she was brutally killed. Daksha is survived by her four-year-old son and 18-month-old daughter.Police said that Lalit had meticulously planned the murder by first insuring his wife for Rs 60 lakh and then getting her killed in what would look like a road accident. “Lalit’s friend Kirit Mali and his driver were also accomplices to the murder”, said sub-inspector A B Shah of Bhildi police station in Deesa.
Shah added that Lalit had paid Rs 2 lakh to Kirit to kill his wife with his car and make it look like an accident.
“The motive behind the murder primarily appears to insurance money of Rs 60 lakh. But Lalit has been saying that he killed his wife of 10 years because of frequent domestic quarrels,” said Shah, adding that police investigating further as Lalit was not talking much.
According to police, on December 26, 2020, Lalit took Daksha in his car to visit the Hanuman temple in Deesa at around 5am. At Geda railway crossing, which lies on Deesa-Tharad road, Lalit parked his car and asked his wife to walk towards the temple with him. While walking briskly, Daksha got left behind.
Meanwhile, Lalit called Kirit, who was waiting nearby as planned, to come with his car. Kirit’s driver who was driving the car knocked down Daksha killing her on the spot, said Shah. Lalit called up the police and informed them about the accident. Initially, a case of accidental death was filed. But Daksha’s parents and relatives doubted Lalit’s version of the incident and sought an investigation.
“Based of phone call records and other circumstantial evidence, we detained Lalit and during questioning he confessed to his crime and named others involved,” added Shah. Two accused Kirit Mali and his driver are still absconding.
08-02-2021
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