Madhya Pradesh: Shahpura bureaucrat smothered to death by unemployed husband
In a spine-chilling incident in Madhya Pradesh, Shahpura Subdivisional Magistrate (SDM) Nisha Napit (51) was allegedly smothered to death by her husband on Sunday. The accused, Manish Sharma (45), is unemployed and was reportedly upset that Napit had not named him as her nominee in her service book, insurance, and bank account. He initially attempted to cover up his crime by lying about the cause of her death. However, the Madhya Pradesh Police arrested Sharma on Monday.
Sharma's elaborate story to cover up murder
Sharma initially lied to the police, saying Napit suffered from a kidney ailment and was fasting on Saturday. He claimed she vomited on Saturday night, and he didn't wake her up the next day as it was a Sunday. Sharma added, "I went for a walk...at 10:00am. When I came back at 2:00pm, she still hadn't woken up." "I tried to wake her up...gave her CPR. I called the doctor who asked me to take her to a hospital."
Here's why police suspected foulplay
Sharma claimed Napit's nose was bleeding when he took her to the hospital, but eventually died of cardiac arrest on Sunday. However, the police officers suspected foul play as the SDM's body turned blue, suggesting it was not a natural death. Later, Dr. Ratnesh Dwivedi, who conducted the postmortem, revealed that Napit was brought to the hospital at least four to five hours after her death.
Accused confessed to crime; arrested, charged with murder
During the police interrogation, however, Sharma confessed to his crime. He admitted that he smothered Napit with a pillow and washed her blood-stained clothes to destroy evidence. The police arrested him under Indian Penal Code (IPC) Section 302 (murder) of IPC on Monday. "Police immediately sealed the (couple's) house, and FSL (forensic science laboratory) team collected the evidence. [Sharma] had cleaned the clothes and pillow covers after the death of the SDM," said Superintendent of Police (SP) Akhil Patel.
Sharma tortured Napit for money: Victim's sister
Napit's sister, Nilima Napit, has accused Sharma of murdering her sister and claimed that he used to torture her for money. "He used to harass [Napit] for money. My sister did not have any disease. [Sharma] has done something wrong," she claimed. "He even didn't let the house help enter Nisha's room," she said. The couple had met on a matrimonial site and got married in 2020. However, her family got to know about the wedding much later, per Nilima.
