9-year-old boy witnesses father's murder; mother held for plotting with lover in Rajasthan's Alwar

Jaipur: A nine-year-old boy in Alwar's Kherli town witnessed the murder of his father, allegedly carried out by his mother's lover with the assistance of four other men, the police said on Wednesday.

The child, who was present at the scene, told the police that his mother stood by silently as the crime unfolded.

The incident took place on the night of June 7, when Veeru Jatav, who ran a tent business, was allegedly killed by Kashiram Prajapat, a street vendor and the lover of Veeru's wife, Anita, with the help of hired accomplices.

"In his statement, the child said that he woke up to the sound of the cot shaking. He saw Kashiram pressing his father's face with a pillow while his mother Anita stood nearby watching. When the boy tried to intervene, Kashiram picked him up and threatened him to keep quiet," Kherli SHO Dhirendra Singh said.

The boy recounted that his father came home late that evening and asked him to charge his phone before heading to bed, while his mother instructed him to sleep early.

Later that night, the child heard noises and allegedly saw his mother opening the door to let in Kashiram and four others.

"I saw pappa being attacked. Mummy didn't say anything. I tried to go to pappa, but Kashiram uncle picked me up and scolded me. Then pappa stopped moving. Mummy is very bad. She got pappa killed," the child told reporters.

Anita and Veeru, both divorcees, had a love marriage. Anita ran a general store, where she came in contact with Kashiram, who sold snacks nearby, the police stated, adding that over time, their relationship deepened, and they allegedly plotted Veeru's murder to be together.

"The plan was executed in a premeditated manner. Kashiram paid Rs 2 lakh to hire four men. Anita opened the door for them on the night of the murder. She remained a silent spectator as her husband was smothered to death," DSP Kailash Chand said.

After the murder, Anita called her sister-in-law and claimed that Veeru had suddenly fallen ill. However, Veeru's elder brother, Gabbar, was suspicious of the 'silent attack' theory.

A post-mortem later confirmed death by strangulation, the police said.

“CCTV footage was scanned during the investigation, and the child’s detailed statement confirmed the sequence of events,” added SHO Singh.

Anita was arrested and sent to police remand. Three of the accused, Vishnu, Naveen, and Chetan, are currently absconding, and efforts are on to trace them.