Man kept chopping wife's body for two months

A software engineer strangled his wife to death over a petty issue and then cut her body into small pieces everyday for two months before he was arrested at his residence in Dehradun on Sunday.

At least 72 pieces of his wife’s body were found inside a freezer which the accused, 37-year old Rajesh Gulati, had purchased as part of his ill design to dispose of the body. According to the police, the accused bought a stone cutting instrument and an iron cutting blade to chop the body into small parts.

All this continued within the walls of his rented house for two months even as Gulati kept lying to his six-year-old twin children that their mother had gone out of station for some work. The accused used anti-odour sprays in the room where his wife’s body was kept for two months to ensure that his neighbours, even his children, did not get suspicious because of the foul smell.

Ironically, theirs was a love marriage solemnised over 10 years ago sans the consent of Rajesh’s parents. With the father now in jail and mother killed, the two small children are presently with their maternal uncle.

The family was staying in Dehradun for the last 18 months. The incident came to light when the brother of the 33-year-old victim, Anupama Gulati, filed a missing complained with the local police after he failed to get a satisfactory reply from the accused about his sister’s whereabouts.

The police were quick to act on the complaint and raided  Gulati’s house on Sunday. The accused has confessed to his crime and is behind bars. He was produced before a local court in Dehradun on Monday and remanded to police custody for further investigation.
Before settling down in Dehradun, Rajesh Gulati served as a software engineer for several years in the US. There had been incidents of domestic violence against Anupama in the past as well. Gulati is already facing charges of domestic violence levelled by his wife, who was killed on October 17.

An official said: “On that ill-fated day, the couple fought over a minor issue. In a fit of rage, Gulati banged her head against the bed. She became unconscious. The accused then strangled Anupama to death”.

Sources said while the family generally preferred a low social profile in the locality where they had been staying, the accused engineer maintained a detached posture with everyone he knew after he murdered his wife.

SSP Dehradun G S Martolia said: “Everyday Gulati went out and dumped some of the pieces on the outskirts of the city. We are questioning him for further investigation.” Gulati is now accusing his wife of infidelity, sources said.