Wife arrested for murder of former Karnataka police chief Om Prakash

Bengaluru: Bengaluru police on Monday arrested Pallavi, wife of Om Prakash, the former Karnataka police chief, who was found murdered at his house on Sunday, in connection with the killing.

Preliminary investigations suggest that Om Prakash got into an argument with his wife, Pallavi, during lunch at their home in HSR Layout. The argument escalated and resulted in his murder. His daughter, Kriti, was also in the house when the incident took place.

HSR Layout police registered the case based on a complaint from Prakash’s 38-year-old son, Karthikesh, who expressed suspicion about his mother and sister, claiming both were suffering from “depression.” On Monday, police took Kriti to NIMHANS for evaluation.    

Considering the complexities involved, the case has been transferred to the Central Crime Branch (CCB) for further investigations. HSR Layout police produced Pallavi to the court on Monday evening and said that they aren’t asking for her custody. Most likely she will be sent to judicial custody.

Om Prakash was away for a week  

Karthikesh told police that Om Prakash had left their home the previous week and was staying with his sister, Sarita Kumari, stating that Pallavi had been issuing him death threats. On Friday, Kriti went to her aunt’s house and forced her father to return, after which she brought him back home.

A top-police official told DH that it was Kriti’s birthday on Saturday (April 19) hence she pleaded with him to come home.

According to the FIR seen by DH, Karthikesh was informed of his father’s murder by a neighbor. Upon arriving at the house, he saw knives and a broken bottle on the floor. He noted that both Pallavi and Kriti had been suffering from “depression” and frequently argued with his father. He expressed suspicion that they had hacked his father to death.

HSR Layout police have filed an FIR under relevant sections of the BNS pertaining to murder and criminal acts committed in furtherance of a common intention by multiple individuals.

Police detained Pallavi on Sunday evening and took her to the HSR Layout police station, while Kriti was questioned by Sarah Fathiema, Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Southeast, at Om Prakash’s residence, where the crime occurred.

Pallavi remains tight-lipped

On Monday morning, police brought Kriti to the HSR Layout police station for questioning. This development followed Karthikesh’s statement implicating both his mother and sister. Initially, police did not suspect Kriti’s involvement and considered Pallavi the prime suspect.

A top-police source told DH that Pallavi’s role was almost established when they reached the crime scene. Her clothes and body were covered in blood. However, there is no clarity on Kriti’s presence.

“She lives on the third floor of the building and it has a different entrance. We have collected samples from the crime scene, we will verify if any sample such as fingerprint matches with Kriti,” the officer said, adding that the decision of her arrest will be made after that.

Additionally, the officer said that Pallavi has been tight-lipped about the incident but has stayed very calm and composed. She hasn’t said anything about the conversation before the altercation with her husband. She is not cooperating with the investigations either.

Further, police said that Kriti cannot be arrested just because the complainant accused her of murder. Especially because the motive behind the murder could be of family issues and cannot go by one person’s statement.

In addition, though the complainant has claimed that both the suspects were suffering from depression, he hasn’t submitted any corroborating medical reports, according to the source. Police are also moving carefully about the case because the sequence of events and people present in the crime scene is unclear. Any hasty arrest could lead to a case in the court.

On Monday evening, police took Pallavi to the crime scene and conducted mahazar, according to sources.