Jamnagar police recover skeletal remains in ‘Drishyam’-like murder case, wife and two others arrested

Jamnagar police recovered skeletal remains believed to be of a man allegedly murdered over two years ago by his wife, her alleged lover and an associate. The remains were found buried beneath a concrete floor of an industrial shed as investigators unravelled the case

Jamnagar: In a case resembling the plot of Bollywood thriller “Drishyam”, Jamnagar police in Gujarat on Thursday exhumed skeletal remains believed to be of a man who was allegedly murdered more than two years ago by his wife, her lover and an associate before being buried deep beneath the concrete floor of an industrial shed, officials said.

The victim’s wife allegedly kept telling relatives that he had gone to Australia for work and could not be contacted as his employer did not permit phone calls, police added.

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The remains, believed to be those of Jignesh Mavadiya, were recovered from a pit around 12 feet below the floor of a shed in the Dared GIDC area, Assistant Superintendent of Police Pratibha said, adding power tools had to be used to drill through the nearly one-foot-thick concrete layer covering the burial site.

“To ascertain the identity of the deceased, the remains have been handed over to forensic experts. The victim’s wife, her alleged lover and one of their associates have been arrested,” the Assistant SP told reporters.

Based on a complaint lodged by Jignesh’s brother, Ashok Mavadiya, B Division police registered an FIR against Jignesh’s wife Prithvi alias Bhumiben, her alleged lover Nilesh Kachhatia and his accomplice Balveer Verma for murder, destruction of evidence and other offences.

As per the complaint, Jignesh, who had a love marriage and was the father of two daughters, had remained out of contact with his family for nearly two years, with his wife claiming he had gone to Australia for work, where his employer did not permit phone calls.

However, the cover-up began to unravel when Jignesh’s cousin, who was planning to travel to Australia, sought his contact number and address in order to meet him there, the official said.

When Prithvi failed to provide the details despite repeated requests, the family threatened to approach police, said Pratibha.

Later, Jignesh’s brother lodged a complaint with City ‘B’ Division police station on July 26, reporting him missing and expressing suspicion that his wife and her alleged lover were involved in his disappearance.

During questioning, Prithvi allegedly confessed that she, along with Nilesh Kachhatia and Balveer Verma, had murdered Jignesh by mixing cyanide in his liquor, police said.

As per the probe, on the night of May 31, 2024, the accused allegedly lured Jignesh to an industrial shed in Dared GIDC area of Jamnagar on the pretext of a liquor party.

“After he consumed the cyanide-laced liquor and died, they allegedly dug a pit about 12 feet deep, buried the body, covered it with soil and later sealed the spot with nearly one-foot-thick concrete layer. The crime scene was reconstructed in the presence of the accused before the excavation was carried out, which revealed skeletal remains believed to be those of Jignesh,” the Assistant SP informed.

Further investigation is underway to establish the complete sequence of events and gather additional evidence in the case, she added.