Wife, Lover and Snake Charmers Kill Husband With Krait in Meerut, Insurance Money Was the Motive

Meerut: A love story that began at a cosmetics shop eight years ago ended in a cold-blooded murder in Hastinapur, Meerut. Atul Panwar, who had married Damini after meeting her in 2018, was found dead in his room. What initially appeared to be a snakebite turned out to be a carefully planned murder. His wife, her lover and two snake charmers have all been arrested.

How did Atul and Damini meet?

The two met at a cosmetics shop in Hastinapur in 2018. They grew close and married about a year later with the approval of both families. Life moved along normally after that. Around three months ago the couple jointly launched a play school called Krishna Kids Play School. That school became the setting for the betrayal that killed Atul.

Who was Tushar and how did he enter the picture?

A young man named Tushar came to work at the school as a driver. He picked up and dropped children and also helped with other household tasks. Over time Damini began travelling with him to the market in the school van. The two grew close, fell in love and their relationship deepened to the point where they began planning to get rid of Atul. Police say Atul had life insurance worth around Rs 20 lakh. The accused had their eyes on that money. The plan was to collect the insurance amount and start a new life together.

How was the murder carried out?

The plan was designed to look like an accidental snakebite so no suspicion would fall on Damini. Two snake charmers, Sonu and Uday, were brought in. They were paid Rs 15,000 in advance with a promise of Rs 5 lakh once the insurance money came in. According to police, Damini first gave Atul an overdose of sleeping pills. Once he was in a deep sleep she released a venomous krait snake inside his clothes. The snake bit him and he died.

What story did Damini tell police?

Damini had prepared her cover story in advance. She told police that because of the heat she had been sleeping outside the room with their son Manik while Atul slept inside. She said she went into the room in the morning with tea and found her husband unconscious. She raised an alarm, neighbours came and Atul was taken to hospital where doctors declared him dead.

How did the post-mortem crack the case?

Damini was initially reluctant to allow a post-mortem. But Atul's father insisted and the examination was carried out. That changed everything as the post-mortem raised suspicions and police began digging deeper. The entire conspiracy started unravelling layer by layer. It also emerged during the investigation that Tushar is himself married and originally from Kohla village. He had been living in Hastinapur's Ramlila Ground Colony at the time of the murder.

Has this happened earlier as well?

Police are drawing comparisons with a similar case from last year in the Bahsuma area where a wife and her lover also staged a snakebite after killing the husband. In that case a post-mortem revealed the man had been strangled. Police believe the accused in Atul's case had learned from that incident and changed their method. But forensic examination and the post-mortem exposed their entire plan just the same.