India: Wife and Lover Arrested Over Murder of 32-Year-Old Disguised as Snakebite

A serious incident in India, initially treated as a death caused by a snakebite, took a different turn after the victim’s wife and her lover were arrested.

Atul Panwar, 32, was found dead in his bed. He jointly ran a nursery school in Hastinapur with his wife, Damini.

According to authorities, Damini and Tushar, her lover who worked as a driver at the nursery school, are suspected of having planned Panwar’s murder to obtain life insurance money.

Police investigations claim that the wife had mixed sleeping pills into her husband’s milk. Then, according to the alleged plan, a venomous snake was released into his bed and bit the 32-year-old, in an attempt to make the incident appear to be an accident.

Police said the suspected pair had previously attempted to kill Atul by staging a car accident. After that attempt failed, they allegedly moved on to the snake scheme.

According to police, the plot was linked to two motives: obtaining 2 million rupees from the insurance policy and removing Atul so that the illicit relationship could continue.

Although his death was initially considered the result of a snakebite, investigators began to examine the circumstances more closely. Analysis of mobile phone data and other evidence, police said, led to the discovery of the alleged scheme involving Damini and Tushar. The latter is also married and had been planning to divorce his wife before the alleged murder plot was uncovered.