Police to question boyfriend in scribe’s murder
By IANSWednesday, May 5, 2010
RANCHI - The Jharkhand Police will question the Delhi-based boyfriend of journalist Nirupama Pathak who was found dead at her home in Koderma district April 29, police said Wednesday.
“We will send a team to Delhi to question Priyabhanshu (Ranjan) in the Nirupama murder case. He will be questioned with the help of Delhi Police,” Superintendent of Police G. Kranti Kumar told IANS from Koderma, about 200 km from here. Ranjan is also a journalist based in New Delhi.
Officials from the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) and forensic experts visited her home in Koderma town Tuesday.
Police have arrested Sudha Devi, mother of 23-year-old Nirupama, and are questioning the dead journalist’s father and brothers about what some believe to be a case of “honour killing”.
Police officials say the mother is not revealing much.
The family insists that Nirupama committed suicide. But the post-mortem examination says she was murdered by smothering and that was 10-12 weeks pregnant.
The family has admitted that they were opposed to Nirupama’s planned marriage with Priyabhanshu, her former batchmate at the Indian Institute of Mass Communication (IIMC).
Nirupama’s brother Samrendra says his family is innocent and that it is Priyabhanshu Ranjan who should be arrested “for the death of Nirupama”.
