Kawardha (Chhattisgarh): In a jaw-dropping story that will leave even top crime novelists thinking, a spurned lover weaved a never-heard-of conspiracy to take revenge on his girlfriend by gifting her a home theatre system fitted with explosives that ended up killing her husband and brother-in-law.
On Monday, a massive explosion took place in a house in Chhattisgarh's Kawardha town. The groom, Mahendra Meravi, and his brother Rajkumar Meravi, were killed in the explosion that happened after they tried to switch on a home theatre system the groom had found among the other gifts he and the bride received two days ago during their wedding.
Such was the intensity of the blast that the groom died on the spot and at least six other persons including a one-and-a-half-year-old child were badly injured. The explosion also destroyed the almirah cooler in the house, blew away the roof and wall, and scattered debris far and wide. The groom's brother Rajkumar succumbed at the hospital during treatment.
After arriving at the scene, the police immediately suspected that the explosion was not caused by the music system itself. Upon investigation, they discovered gunpowder among the wreckage of the home theater, which confirmed that this was, in fact, a case of murder. The police called in a forensic team from Durg to assist with the investigation, and with the help of the cyber team, they were able to identify the accused, Sarju Markam, who was the lover of the bride.
During interrogation, the accused admitted to carrying out the attack as an act of revenge against the bride and groom. Markam, who was already married and had two children, had been in a relationship with the bride, Anjana Meravi, for several years, but she wanted to end the relationship once her marriage to Mahendra was finalized. A week before the wedding, the girl had a heated argument with Markam over the phone and revealed everything to her fiance. In response, Markam threatened both the girl's fiance and the bride herself, warning them not to disturb him again.
Markam became enraged by the rejection and began plotting to kill both the bride and groom. He purchased a music system from the Mandai market in Madhya Pradesh and soaked one and a half kilograms of explosive material in petrol before setting it off with an electronic device. As soon as the lamp was switched on, the music system exploded, killing the groom and his brother.
The police were able to track down Markam after discovering the name of the shop that sold the music system to him. He was subsequently arrested and charged with murder under Section 302, as well as other sections. It was later revealed that Markam had obtained ammonium nitrate gunpowder from his previous work in stone mines blasting in Indore. The police chief, SP Lal Umend Singh, praised the team's work in apprehending the culprit and offered a reward of ten thousand rupees for their efforts.
Also read: Spurned lover ran his car over girl, attempted to make it look like road accident
