Bhubaneswar: In a shocking and gruesome incident, a man allegedly murdered his wife by slitting her throat with a blade inside their house at the Chakeisiani Colony under Mancheswar police station in Bhubaneswar on Monday.
The accused has been identified as Pradeep Jena, a resident of Ranpur area in Nayagarh district.
According to reports, he allegedly killed his wife Monika Jena when she was alone at home. After committing the crime, he locked the house from outside with a new lock and fled. Later, he sat inside a nearby auto-rickshaw and consumed poison in an attempt to end his life. Police rescued the accused from the auto and admitted him to Capital Hospital. Monika’s body was found on a cot with her throat slit.
Sources revealed that Monika and Pradeep were married nine years ago as per Vedic rituals and had a son. Soon after marriage, Pradeep and his family allegedly started torturing Monika for dowry. Due to continuous harassment, Monika had filed a dowry torture case at Nayagarh Police Station. She later moved to Chennai for work, but Pradeep followed her there and continued to assault her. Monika eventually returned to Bhubaneswar and was staying in the Mancheswar area. Two months ago, Pradeep came to her residence, beat her, and took away their son. Monika then filed another complaint at the Mahila Police Station. To escape further torture, Monika shifted to a new rented house in Chakeisiani Sahi. However, Pradeep searched for her by showing her photo in the locality for the past two days. On Monday afternoon around 12pm, when Monika’s mother and sibling had gone out for work, the accused entered the house, locked it from inside, and attacked her.
According to preliminary investigation, Pradeep made three attempts to kill Monika. He first tried to cut her hand with the blade but failed. He then tried to strangle her with a towel and force her to consume poison. Finally, he slit her throat with the blade before fleeing the scene. Monika’s mother returned home in the afternoon around 5 pm and was surprised to find a new lock on the door. With the help of her son and daughter, she broke open the lock and discovered Monika’s body on the cot with her throat slit.
Mancheswar Police, along with a scientific team, reached the spot and conducted an investigation.
The team collected the blade, gamucha, and blood samples from the crime scene. The body has been sent for post-mortem to Capital Hospital.
Police have registered a murder case and are investigating the matter further. The accused is undergoing treatment at the hospital.
