"Can't Get Mouth Open": Delhi Woman To Lover Midway Through Husband's Murder

A 36-year-old man's death in Delhi's Uttam Nagar, initially attributed to accidental electrocution, has turned into a murder case following the discovery of a chat between his wife and cousin. Police have arrested the victim's spouse and her lover -- the victim's cousin -- for their role in the killing.

The victim, Karan Dev, was declared dead at a hospital in West Delhi's Janakpuri area on the morning of July 13. At the time, his wife Sushmita claimed he had suffered an accidental electric shock at home. The family declined a post-mortem, believing the death to be natural. Police insisted on an autopsy given the victim's relatively young age and the circumstances of his death. The body was sent to Deen Dayal Upadhyay Hospital in Harinagar for post-mortem examination.

Days later, a conversation retrieved from Instagram turned the course of the investigation. The victim's younger brother, Kunal Dev, recovered an incriminating chat between Sushmita and Rahul -- Karan's paternal cousin -- revealing the murder plot. Kunal preserved the conversation on video and submitted it to the police on July 16.

The messages reveal that the accused had mixed 15 sleeping pills in Karan's food on the night of July 12. When the sedatives failed to take immediate effect, Sushmita grew anxious. 

She wrote to Rahul: "Check once how long it does it takes to die after taking the medicine. It's been three hours since he ate food. No vomiting, no potty, nothing. And no death yet either. Then what should we do, suggest something."

Rahul replied: "If you can't figure anything out, give him a shock."

The conversation continued, with Sushmita asking: "How to tie him up for the shock?"

Rahul: "With tape."

Sushmita: "He's breathing very slowly."

Rahul: "Give him all the medicine you have."

Sushmita: "I can't get his mouth open. I can pour water in, but I can't give the medicine. You come here, maybe together we can manage to feed it to him."

According to the police, the accused intended to make Karan's death appear accidental by electrocuting him after sedating him. When the sleeping pills did not immediately result in unconsciousness, they decided to administer an electric shock -- allegedly by applying current to his finger -- while he was still sedated. They hoped to attribute his death to an electrical accident in the household.

Once the murder had been carried out, Sushmita reportedly went to her in-laws' residence nearby and informed them that Karan had suffered an electric shock. The family rushed to the flat and transported him to the hospital, where he was declared dead.

At the time, the victim's father and cousin (the accused Rahul) strongly objected to a post-mortem. Despite resistance, police proceeded with the autopsy due to procedural norms and suspicions around the unnatural death of a young man.

The case turned on July 16, when Kunal handed over the chat evidence and formally accused his sister-in-law and cousin of murder. Following questioning and review of the chat, an FIR was registered. Both suspects have reportedly confessed during interrogation.

According to police sources, during her confession, Sushmita said Karan had slapped and abused her the day before Karwa Chauth and often demanded money.