Three years after man forced himself on wife, killed her, Mumbai court gives him life in jail

The couple’s six-year-old son witnessed the murder, said Mumbai police

A 27-year-old Thane man, accused of killing his wife in November 2014, was sentenced to life imprisonment on Tuesday.

Police said the man had demanded dowry as he wanted to buy an autorickshaw with the money. (HT File Photo)

The accused, Rajkumar Tukaram Chavan, worked as an ambulance driver with the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. He lived with his wife Rupali at Azad Nagar in Kapurbawdi. The two got married in 2008, said police.

On November 11, 2014, Rajkumar came home at 9.30 pm and asked Rupali to serve him food. However, she refused, said K Katkar, investigating officer from Kapurbawdi police station.

“The two began fighting after Rajkumar demanded that Rupali serve him food at least three times a day. He left the house in anger and returned around 12 am. He then demanded food once more. However, Rupali refused,” he added.

Rupali also rejected his advances. However, he forced himself on her, said police. When she told him never to do such a thing again, he sat on her chest and strangled her. The couple’s six-year-old son witnessed the crime.

“Rajkumar took his children to his parents’ house. He them confessed to his crime at a local police station,” added Katkar.

Police said Rajkumar had demanded dowry as he wanted to buy an autorickshaw with the money. They however added that Rupali had demanded Rs3 lakh from Rajkumar.

“Rajkumar had told us about his marital problems. He had attempted suicide at the Thane railway station two weeks before he killed his wife. He stopped coming to work a week before the murder,” said, Shakuntala Majumdar, president, Thane SPCA.