Maharashtra: Kolhapur man pushes girlfriend into gorge after she refuses to marry him, tells family she went missing; held

Police said they became suspicious after noticing discrepancies in suspect`s account. Representational Pic/File

A man has been arrested for allegedly murdering his girlfriend by pushing her into a deep gorge near a waterfall in Maharashtra's Kolhapur district after she refused to marry him, police said on Monday, reported the PTI.

The accused, identified as 25-year-old Sripad Vadar, allegedly tried to cover up the crime by telling his family that the woman, identified as Tarannum,23, had gone missing.

Police said they became suspicious after noticing discrepancies in his account and subsequently recovered her body from the gorge.

Couple had been in a relationship for years

According to Inspector Sandip Jagtap of Bhudargad police station, Vadar and Tarannum, both residents of Gargoti town, had been in a relationship for four to five years, as per the PTI.

However, Tarannum's marriage had been fixed about four months ago, following which she reportedly started avoiding Vadar.

Upset by the change in her behaviour, Vadar allegedly took her to a tourist spot near Patgaon village in Bhudargad taluka on the afternoon of October 9 for what he described as a final meeting before her wedding, the news agency reported.

Pushed her into gorge

During the meeting near Naikwadi Waterfall, Vadar allegedly asked Tarannum to marry him. When she refused, the two got into an argument, following which he allegedly pushed her into the deep gorge, police said, according to the PTI.

Vadar later returned home and told his family that Tarannum had gone missing. He allegedly claimed that he had parked his motorcycle and gone to fetch water for her when she disappeared, reported the PTI.

Police recover body with rescue team's help

Initially treated as a missing-person case, the incident took a different turn after police noticed inconsistencies in Vadar's account.

During sustained questioning, he allegedly confessed to the murder, Inspector Jagtap said.

Police then sought assistance from the Sahyadri Rescue Team from Amboli to retrieve the body. Tarannum's body was recovered from the gorge on Saturday, the official said, the news agency reported.

Vadar has been remanded in police custody for five days, police said.

Officials said that further investigations into the matter was underway.

(with PTI inputs)