“Rajendra Bhausaheb Gaikwad, who holds a degree in computer engineering and works with an IT company in Hinjewadi, slit the throat of his wife, Jyoti, with a kitchen knife. It was recovered from the crime scene,” he said Inspector (Crime) Digamber Shinde of Hadapsar Police.
A police team rushed into the three-story building of Ganganagar Gurdwara colony in Phursungi after being informed of the incident by the owner. “We found Jyoti lying motionless in the bedroom with bloodstains all over her. We took Rajendra into custody and gave custody of the couple’s five-month-old daughter to Jyoti’s sister, who lives in Pune. Jyoti had resigned from a software major in Kharadi just three days ago,” Shinde said.
Rajendra is from Madagi village in Deglur taluka of Nanded district, while Jyoti belonged to a family from Cidco colony in Nanded. The couple got married in Nanded on 20 November 2020. Rajendra and Jyoti had relocated to Phursungi after securing jobs in IT companies in the city.
Computer engineer cuts wife’s throat with kitchen knife; kept
Jyoti had delivered a baby girl on June 27 in Nanded and returned to her home in Pune on Sunday, Shinde said.
Jyoti’s sister Gangasagar Kshirsagar (31), who lives in Pashan, filed a complaint, naming Rajendra and his brother responsible for Jyoti’s death. “We have booked Rajendra’s brother based on the complaint and are investigating his role in the matter,” the police inspector said.
He said, “Kshirsagar alleged in his complaint that Rajendra has been constantly harassing Jyoti for the past six months by suspecting her of infidelity for delivering a baby girl and disavowing paternity of the baby girl. He insisted that Jyoti hand over her monthly salary to him. Kshirsagar also accused Rajendra of asking for dowry and accused her brother of harassing Jyoti and demanding 50,000 rupees to make her stay with her husband.”
Kshirsagar told TOI at the police station, “After Jyoti complained of physical and mental harassment, our relatives held five meetings with my brother-in-law, Rajendra, and advised him not to harass Jyoti for trivial matters, but he continued torturing her. We held the sixth meeting with Rajendra on Sunday and invited him to get together and live a happy married life, but all this is now in vain.”
She said: “I learned of Jyoti’s death when I received a call from the landlord at around 7:45. I rushed to her house and found her lying in a pool of blood. My sister had not filed a complaint against her husband to police, NGO, social service organization and state commission for women in the past as she felt he would improve his behavior and things would be sorted out as happens with other couples.She quit her job to take care of her son.
Inspector Shinde said the victim’s autopsy was performed at Sassoon General Hospital. His report is awaited. Jyoti’s family members brought his body to Nanded to perform the last rites.
