A local court convicted a 38-year-old man who was accused of killing his wife and storing his dismembered body in the refrigerator three years ago.
District and Sessions Judge Mrudula Bhatia convicted Girish Pote for killing his 33-year-old wife Madhuwanti Pathak, who was born and brought up in France and held a French passport, under IPC sections 302 (murder) and 201 (causing disappearance of evidence).
The judge observed that prosecution has proved beyond reasonable doubt the “gruesome” murder by the accused.
After the judgement was made, when the accused was asked regarding the quantum of sentence he remained silent.
Public prosecutor Buleshwar Hinge, arguing for the quantum of sentence, demanded capital punishment for Pote by highlighting the brutal manner in which the crime was committed.
The prosecutor told the court that the accused had on December 3, 2013, killed his wife, chopped her body into pieces and later hid the body parts in the refrigerator.
The judge after hearing both the sides posted for tomorrow the decision regarding the quantum of sentence.
The crime came to light after Pote told his cousin Nitin Gadare about the murder, who later informed the police.
The prosecutor informed that Madhuwanti and Pote got married on June 20, 2011. They have a child who is two-year-old now.
Pathak’s mother, a musician, had married an Indian and in 2009 returned to France where she died, said the prosecutor.
Pote worked as a sales manager in a garment’s showroom but was jobless for six months before the incident took place.
The couple lived in the flat which belonged to the victim’s mother, the prosecutor said.
“Madhuwanti wanted to go back to France after selling the property in Mumbai. During investigation, Pote revealed that his wife disliked India and wanted to take the money and fly back to France. But he had opposed the idea, leading to frequent fights between them,” said the prosecutor.
Four days prior to the incident, the child was sent to a relative’s house in Thane. On the day of the incident, Pote convinced Madhuwanti that he would allow her to go back to France. Later, he went to a mall and bought a packet of knives, Hinge said.
After returning home, he killed her. However, he could not take the body out of the flat as the building had CCTV cameras installed in the lobby and the lift.
