Woman, three others held for killing husband, Cops cite denial of divorce as motive behind murder

Thane: A woman and three others have been arrested for allegedly killing her husband, whose partially burnt body was found on a highway in Maharashtra's Thane district, police said on Friday.

The Thane Rural police have booked Hasina Mehboob Shaikh, her brother, Fayaz Zakir Husain Shaikh (35), and two others, who plotted and killed the victim after he denied her a divorce, an official said.

He said that the partially burnt and decomposed body of the victim, Tipanna, a native of Siruguppa village in Karnataka's Bellary district, was found near Shahapur on the Mumbai-Nashik Highway on November 25.

According to the police, Tipanna and Hasina were estranged and lived separately due to some domestic disputes, and she had demanded a divorce, which he refused.

"The primary motive appears to be the victim's refusal to grant the accused a divorce, leading her to plan his murder with the help of her relatives and friends," said Inspector Mukesh Dhage of the Shahapur police station.

Acting on Hasina's instructions, her brother, who is an autorickshaw driver, along with his accomplices, took the victim for a ride on November 17. They drove him to a forested area near Shahapur, where they allegedly killed him and attempted to burn the body before dumping it near the highway.

The police had registered a case under sections 103(1) (murder) and 238 (destruction of evidence) and zeroed in on the accused following a probe.

During interrogation, Fayaz confessed that the murder was carried out on his sister Hasina's directions.