Delhi man kills wife for not cooking food

Police said the woman was anaemic and weighed just 40-45 kilos. She was physically weak, needed regular rest and couldn’t cook frequently. The absence of food in the house angered Gupta and he began beating his wife with a stick.

A 28-year-old man assaulted and killed his 22-year-old wife in outer Delhi’s Bhalswa Dairy for not keeping food ready for him when he returned from work, police officers aware of the matter said on Wednesday, adding that the woman had not been keeping well and had given birth only six months ago.

Preeti’s mother told police that she would often be thrashed by her husband for not cooking food at home. (Representational Image/ Getty Images)

Police said the incident occurred on Sunday night, when Bajrangi Gupta, who ran a tea shop at Azadpur Mandi, returned to his home in Bhalswa Dairy’s Mukandpur neighbourhood. Upon finding that his wife Preeti had not kept food ready for him, he flew into a rage and started assaulting her with a wooden stick, officers said.

Ravi Kumar Singh, deputy commissioner of police (outer-north), said, “The woman was anaemic and weighed just 40-45 kilos. She was physically weak, needed regular rest and couldn’t cook frequently… The absence of food in the house angered Gupta and he began beating his wife with a stick… She suffered internal injuries. The anaemic woman bled internally and her body went into shock.”

Police said Preeti could not save herself as the couple’s six-month-old daughter was in her lap at the time of the assault.

The woman’s relatives rushed her to the Burari Government Hospital, where she succumbed to her injuries on Monday. Hospital authorities subsequently alerted the police.

Preeti’s mother told police that she would often be thrashed by her husband for not cooking food at home.

Since the couple had been married for only three years, Preeti’s death prompted an inquiry by the sub-divisional magistrate. “The statement of her mother was recorded by the SDM, who mentioned the thrashing,” said the DCP.

Once the autopsy confirmed Preeti was beaten to death, police registered a murder case, and based on a tip-off, arrested Gupta.

“We have arrested Gupta and have recovered the wooden stick he used in the murder. He has been booked for murder,” said Singh.