Bhopal, Sep 21 (IANS): A 45-year-old female RTO inspector was allegedly murdered with a hammer at a house in Bhopal, while her partner was later found hanging from a tree near the residence, police said on Monday.
The body of Meenakshi Gokhale was found in the outer room of a house in Lake Pearl Colony under Khajuri Sadak police station limits.
She had injuries on her head, and a blood-stained hammer was found near the body, police said.
Gokhale had reached the house around 7 p.m. on Sunday with her friend Kritika and her three-year-old daughter. Kritika and the child slept in an inner room that night.
When she woke up around 7 a.m. on Monday, she found Gokhale’s body and informed the police.
The house belonged to 48-year-old Pawan Kumar Dwivedi, who was in a relationship with Gokhale. He was subsequently found hanging from a tree located around 20 metres from the house. A bank passbook was recovered from his pocket, police said.
Police said the preliminary investigation revealed that Dwivedi wanted to marry Gokhale, but she was unwilling, and an argument over the issue late on Sunday night could have led to the alleged attack.
Investigators suspect he struck her on the head with a hammer before later taking his own life.”Prima facie, the investigation indicates there was a dispute between the two over marriage. The crime scene has been examined and forensic evidence collected. Further details will emerge after the postmortem and other investigation,” Additional DCP Sanjeev Pathak said.
Gokhale was from Datia district, while Dwivedi was originally from Sidhi district. Dwivedi had earlier run coaching classes in Indore, where the two had met when Gokhale was unmarried and preparing for competitive examinations, police said.
Pathak said Gokhale had divorced her husband around two years ago. Police suspect that the assault took place in the courtyard and that Dwivedi later dragged Gokhale’s body into the front room before locking it from outside.
Police and forensic teams examined the crime scene and collected evidence. The exact sequence of events and circumstances surrounding the deaths are being investigated, police said.
