Deputy sarpanch kills wife suspecting fidelity, police say

Warangal: Suspecting fidelity, the deputy sarpanch of Azmeera Thanda village panchayat killed his wife with an axe while she was sleeping in the early hours in Maripeda mandal of Mahbubabad district on Tuesday, police said.

The accused was Banothu Ravinder, married to Mamatha (28) six years ago. The couple had a four-year-old son and a two-year-old daughter.

Since the past one year, family disputes were on between the wife and husband. Ravinder beat his wife several times, suspecting her fidelity. Mamatha worked as an agricultural labourer.

She returned home from her work as usual on Monday evening. Ravinder was in a rage in recent days and killed wife with an axe when she was asleep in the bed in the early hours on Tuesday and escaped from the scene.

Police later reached the spot along with a forensic team and collected blood samples and fingerprints and tried to shift the body to the government hospital for postmortem.

However, the relatives of Mamatha came to the Azmeera Thanda and engaged in a heated argument with the police. Why such a hurry to shift the body before the relatives came in from other place to see the body a last time, they asked.

Some relatives allegedly tried to attack the police, alleging that the cops were trying to hide the accused Ravinder. Cops even burnt the clothes and furniture present in the house to destroy evidence, the relatives alleged.

DCP Raghu rushed to the spot along with some cops and tried to broker peace. But the relatives allegedly started pelting stones at the police, upon which he ordered a lathi charge and brought the situation under control. The body was later shifted to the Mahbubabad area hospital for post mortem.