Police on Sunday arrested a self-styled 'tantrik' for allegedly murdering a 26-year-old man near a mazar in Shivli after a dispute over "vashikaran" rituals, officials said.
The victim, identified as Rajababu from Arshadpur village, had sought the accused, Neelu, to allegedly help him win back his former girlfriend, who had married another man in April.
He initially paid the tantrik Rs 36,000 and later an additional Rs 1.5 lakh for the promised rituals, Superintendent of Police (Kanpur Dehat) Shraddha Narendra Pandey said.
On the evening of November 24, Neelu called Rajababu to his village for "final rituals". After purchasing liquor, the two proceeded to a nearby field where Neelu staged a fake ritual and made the youth write a note, police said.
A dispute broke out when Neelu allegedly demanded more money. During the quarrel, he allegedly stabbed Rajababu multiple times in the chest with a knife, killing him on the spot. Neelu then placed the murder weapon in Rajababu's hand and attached a note and a photograph of his ex-girlfriend to the body to make it appear as a suicide, police added.
The youth's body was recovered the next morning (on November 25). A liquor packet found at the scene led investigators to a nearby shop, where CCTV footage showed him with Neelu shortly before the incident.
Neelu was arrested after initially attempting to mislead the probe but later allegedly confessed during questioning.
The murder weapon has been recovered, and post-mortem and CCTV evidence were also collected, the SP said.
"The crime was committed purely for money under the garb of occult practices," Pandey said, adding that further legal formalities are underway.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
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