- By Deeksha Gour
- Sun, 09 Nov 2025 06:02 PM (IST)
- Source:JND
Pune News: A 42-year-old man from Pune has been arrested for allegedly murdering his wife and burning her body after suspecting her of having an affair. Police said the accused, inspired by the Bollywood film Drishyam, planned the crime in advance and later filed a false missing complaint to mislead investigators.
The accused, identified as Samir Punjabrao Jadhav, lived with his wife Anjali (38), their two children and his mother at Swami Sankul Apartments in Shivane. The couple, originally from Amravati, had been married since 2017. Police said frequent quarrels over suspicion of infidelity had strained their relationship for more than a year.
According to a Indian Express report, on October 28, Samir approached the Warje police station claiming that Anjali had gone missing two days earlier after she stepped out around 2:15 PM to “meet a friend.” He even kept visiting the police station for updates, pretending to be worried.
However, when police reviewed CCTV footage from nearby areas, they found visuals of Samir and Anjali travelling together on October 26. When questioned, Samir’s statements were inconsistent, raising suspicion. After prolonged interrogation, he confessed to killing his wife, police said.
The Indian Express report cited Deputy Commissioner of Police (Zone 3) Sambhaji Kadam as stating that, preliminary investigation revealed that Samir himself was having an extra-marital affair, yet he accused Anjali of being unfaithful. He claimed to have seen “objectionable chats” on her phone. Police, however, later discovered that Samir had sent an “I love you” message to his wife from a friend’s phone during a trip to Hyderabad and when she replied affectionately, he took it as “proof” of an affair.
Investigators found that Samir had watched Drishyam multiple times in the last few months and drew ideas from the film to hide his crime. About a month before the murder, he rented a godown in Shindewadi near Gogalwadi Phata, 25 km from Pune, for Rs 18,000 per month. He used his fabrication skills to build a kiln inside and stocked wood and fuel in preparation.
On October 26, Samir took Anjali out in a car, telling her they were going on a short trip. After travelling towards Khed Shivapur, he brought her to the rented godown under the pretext of stopping for refreshments. There, around 10 pm, he strangled her, burned her body in the kiln, and later dumped the ashes in a river before dismantling the setup.
Police said he cleaned the crime scene thoroughly and sent his mother and children away before committing the act. A case under Section 103 (murder) of the Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita has been registered at Warje Police Station and transferred to Rajgad Police for further investigation.