Did Facebook friend murder this girl?

Cops found her body inside a bag at New Delhi Railway Station last month. Now they claim that the man on the right, who the deceased met online and later moved in with, is behind her killing

The tattoo on her back has captured the imagination of a section of the media and the general public. But the question that has been puzzling most since 29-year-old Neetu Solanki's body was discovered inside a kit bag at New Delhi Railway Station on February 11 was 'who killed her and why?'u00a0



Less than a month later, Delhi police claims to have arrested a man from west Delhi for helping the victim's live-in partner dispose off the corpse. Naveen Shokeen was arrested from Nangloi on Monday, Deputy Commissioner of Police Ashok Chand said. "The main accused Raju Gehlot is still absconding," he added.u00a0u00a0


Wanted: Sources in Air India said that Raju Gehlot, the accused,
has not reported to work since April 2010 despite several
notices from the company.

Neetu's body had remained unidentified for many days. Cops found a peacock tattoo on her back and she had a bellybutton ring. Police assumed that the victim belonged to the relatively upper strata of society and started working on the case from this angle. Nobody claimed the body till March 23 when a person named Kartar Singh approached cops saying that the deceased was her daughter and she was in a live-in relation since long. Now the police have declared that the girl was murdered by her boyfriend, but certain questions still remain unanswered.

Identity crisis
"In the investigation we found that the girl has a tattoo on her lower back and she had navel piercing. After several hue and cry notices, the girl's father came to us. He told us that Neetu was working with a call centre in Gurgaon and she had left home in May 2010. She told her father that she was living with a guy named Raju Gehlot. On the 10th of February she called her family members and spoke with them. We also interrogated one of the accused's friends, named Naveen Shaukeen. Naveen revealed that on the night of the murder Raju met him and said that he had murdered Neetu and needed his car to dump the body. But Naveen didn't agree with him. Raju then tried to hire a radio taxi but the taxi service didn't respond. Then he hired a vehicle and dumped Neetu's body in front of the New Delhi Railway Station," said Ashok Chand, DCP, Crime branch.

Neither the cops nor Neetu's relatives are sure whether the deceased had married Raju or not. The motive remains unclear. Cops didn't find the weapon of offence. Neetu told her family members that she was going to Singapore but cops don't have any such confirmation. The police have arrested the accused's friend under section 212/202 of IPC but the main culprit is still absconding. Also police aren't sure Neetu's family took so long to identify the body.

Stellar performers
Cops confirmed that Raju Gehlot, the main accused, is a Delhi University pass out and he also did a diploma course in French language and a Master's in Tourism. Then he got a job as a crew member with Air India. The victim herself hadn't done too badly in life. She had stood for elections for councillor from her area in 2007 and lost. Neetu was also an LLB from Delhi University.

"Raju met Neetu in 2009 and in May 2010 he left his office. Raju is a resident of Navad area of Delhi and his family members knew that he was in a live-in relationship. The accused visited his friend's home after the murder on 13th and again on the 20th when he stayed on till the 25th of February. We are conducting raids to locate him," DCP Chand added.

The post-mortem report has revealed that five injury marks were found on the corpse. "These include one on the backside of the neck, one on the left hand and the remaining on the thighs. Two of the wounds were made with a sharp object while the rest were heavy blows using the fist. The wound on the back of her neck was supposed to be fatal," Chand explained. Cops confirmed that Raju was living in Harinagar Ashram area of south Delhi under the assumed name Sandeep.

The other woman
The deceased's father has alleged that Raju's mother helped him kill Neetu. Also one of the eyewitnesses told the cops that Raju came in an auto with a woman on New Delhi Railway on the night of murder. "Raju and his mother planned and murdered my daughter as they wanted her out of their life," said Kartar Sing, father of the deceased. But cops didn't have any confirmation about the involvement of any other woman. "In the investigation so far we don't have any confirmation about such involvements. These facts will be clarified only after the accused is arrested," said Ashok Chand.

Online strategy
Sources in Air India said that Raju Gehlot had disappeared from office in April 2010. "He was served a notice as well. However, he didn't reply and didn't return to duty," they said. "Last year, a number of female colleagues had complained about some writings on his facebook wall. He used to write messages to female colleagues wall that read: "You are not a good girl. Do not even try to get closer to my husband. Don't think that it's him, I have accessed his password and id." "It seems he wanted to show that his girlfriend was of a suspicious nature. He wanted to portray a false of image of her. Apparently, he did not want to continue to have a relation with her," said a former colleague of his.
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On the spot
On receiving information that Raju Gehlot, the prime suspect in the murder case, was recently living in Harinagar Ashram area in south Delhi with a different name MiD DAY reached the scene well before the cops. We managed to speak to the landlord before cops and broke into the house occupied by the live-in couple.
Sunil Sharma the owner of the house said that Raju was his first tenant and paid him around Rs 7000 in advance before shifting in the room along with a girl. "He had been living in my house since January 20 and never picked up any arguments. On February 16 he again came to me and paid me rent for March in advance. He was doing something whole night inside the room that I don't know about," said Sunil. Some blood stains could still be seen on the floor of the rented accommodation. Crime Branch team broke open the door of the room where Raju was living. MiD DAY was present when the lock was being broken by the cops. Raju had kept a large teddy bear, a colour television and a bed inside. Crime branch sleuths collected some fingerprints and other forensic samples.