Delhi: Year after woman reports husband as missing, she & partner held for murder

Indian Express

3 days ago

On July 5, last year, Pritam Prakash from Outer North Delhi's Alipur, was murdered and his body dumped in a drain near Agwanpur village at Ganaur district in Haryana's Sonipat. Fifteen days later, his wife Soniya (34) filed a missing complaint at Alipur police station, claiming that Pritam had gone missing during the night of July 5.
What began as a probe into a missing person's complaint unraveled into a calculated plot involving deception, betrayal, and a staged disappearance, eventually leading to Soniya and her partner Rohit's (28) arrests on Friday for Pritam's murder, police said on Saturday.
The motive behind the murder – a toxic marriage, years of domestic abuse, and the desire to start a new life together.
The case took a turn when Delhi Police, conducting routine checks on absconding criminals, noticed that Pritam had been off the grid for too long. In fact, he had been missing for so long that he had been declared a Proclaimed Offender in one of the cases lodged against him. It was then, police said, that they discovered the missing person complaint filed by Soniya.
When they attempted to trace Pritam's phone, the police realised that it was active in Jaji village of Sonipat. A raid was conducted but in place of Pritam, the police found Rohit, in possession of the phone.
Police said Rohit first attempted to obfuscate the truth by saying that he had bought the phone from a stranger. When questioned further, he cracked.
He allegedly admitted to being in a relationship with Soniya and claimed that she had given him the phone to dispose of after Pritam's murder.
Subsequently, police said, Soniya was arrested.
She allegedly admitted that she hired her sister's brother-in-law, Vijay, as a contract killer to murder Pritam for a price of Rs 1 lakh.
DCP (Crime) Harsh Indora said, 'Soniya married Pritam Prakash when she was 16 years old… It was a love marriage. But Pritam was a drug addict and often used to beat her up. They frequently fought over it. Pritam had been to jail many times for illegal possession of weapons, robbery, theft, and kidnapping, among others… because of this, the atmosphere at home was not pleasant.' He added that in 2023-24, Soniya became friends with Rohit, who used to drive a taxi in Delhi, over social media.
The police said that on July 2, last year, after a fight with Pritam, Soniya left for her sister's house in Ganaur in Rohit's cab. During the car ride, she allegedly asked Rohit to kill Pritam. But when Rohit asked for Rs 6 lakh, she dropped the idea, said police.
Three days later, Pritam came to Ganaur to pick up Soniya. There, the couple fought again and Pritam insulted her, said police. Incensed, Soniya allegedly decided to murder Pritam.
Police said she then approached Vijay. 'At Soniya and Vijay's request, Pritam agreed to stay back in Ganaur… She went to sleep on the terrace… After some time, she heard Pritam's screams. When she woke up in the morning, she saw that Pritam was not at home,' said the DCP.
The following day, Soniya left for home with Pritam's autorickshaw, which she later sold to pay Vijay Rs 1 lakh and repay
some loans.
Police said that Pritam's body, then unidentified, was discovered by the Sonipat police on July 10. Ten days later, Soniya filed a missing person complaint.
This June, before Soniya and Rohit's arrest, Vijay was arrested in a theft case.