Watchman at railway godown in Mumbai kills mom-in-law after she sends his wife away

The victim didn’t like her son-in-law and sent her daughter away a day before her murder

A 35-year-old watchman of a godown at railway premises in Borivli allegedly killed his 55-year-old mother-in-law on September 7 after she didn’t let her daughter live with him and sent her away. The woman’s body was found in the godown on Sunday.

The accused Salim Langda alias Nandlal is at large but the police arrested his accomplice Raju Yadav, 22, on Monday and he confessed to have helped Langda kill his mother-in-law.

The Borivli GRP had received information that a strange smell was coming from the locked godown outside platform number 10. The police opened the godown on Sunday and found a decomposing body of a woman wrapped in a bedsheet.

The police officers said the godown was used to store construction material for the lift for the work going on at railway premises. “Due to the rain, the work was discontinued and the material was locked inside the godown, where Langda used to stay with his wife Pinky and mother-in-law Satabai,” said a police officer from the Borivli GRP.

The police added that Sitabai didn’t like Langda, who was irked after she sent her daughter away a day before her murder. Salim then asked Raju to help him kill her. While Raju held her legs, Salim hit her with a stick and then strangulated her with her saree. “Locals said Salim has been missing since Thursday. Since these people are all beggars or do odd jobs, they do not have a permanent address,” said Purushottam Karad, deputy commissioner of police, GRP.