By Nayak Paudel
Kathmandu, Apr. 14: In the morning of April 11, 2020, police found the body of Binda Puri, who had been living alone at her residence in Aathrai Rural Municipality in Terhathum. The police found that she was murdered the night before.
According to the Terhathum District Police Office, Binda’s neck bore the marks inflicted by a Khukuri.
Soon after, the police started investigation by searching for the individuals who might have come to the residence during that night. They tracked the call records and the area where her mobile phone was active. Police also recovered the blood-soaked clothes thrown in a nearby forest.
Then the police arrested her brothers-in-law -- Surendra Puri, 31 and Bal Krishna Puri, 24 -- suspecting them of having hands in her murder.
“While interrogating the duo, they revealed the mastermind of the murder: Kaji Man Puri, Binda’s husband,” said Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Gautam Thapa of Terhathum District Police.
He had hatched the plot to kill her from the United Arab Emirates (UAE), where he was living at the time.
“The reason why he wanted to kill his wife was that he was suspicious of her activities back home, and he wanted to stop her from sullying his family’s honour and prestige. So he murdered her with the help of his two brothers,” said DSP Thapa.
Acting on the plan, the duo arrived at the residence on April 10, 2020. Prior to that, they had informed Binda that they were coming there to hand her some money.
According to the investigating officers, the duo had planned the murder very well. Surendra and Bal Krishna had left Jhapa for Terhathum by informing their family that they were going to Kathmandu for an interview, they said.
When the duo arrived, Binda went to the kitchen to prepare some snacks, where they attacked her with the Khukari, killing her.
“They first tried to hang her, for which they had brought a rope with them, but it didn’t work. Since they had reached the residence with the intention of killing her, they had carried a Khukuri with them, which they used to slice her throat,” DSP Thapa informed.
Despite arresting the duo a few days after the incident, the mastermind Kaji Man Puri was yet to be brought to justice, as he was living in the UAE. Around six months later, the district police had requested the Nepal Police headquarters to begin process for arresting Kaji Man from the Gulf country.
Armed with the evidence, National Central Bureau, the unit of Nepal Police which coordinates with the Interpol, asked the France’s Lyon-based organisation for help. The Interpol Red Notice was then issued against Kaji Man.
“Facilitated by the UAE’s Interpol unit, a team from Nepal’s Interpol unit arrested Kaji Man from Abu Dhabi,” reads the Tuesday’s daily news bulletin issued by the Nepal Police Headquarters.
He was then repatriated to Kathmandu. According to the officials, he will be taken to the Terhathum District Police for further legal process by Wednesday.