Gujarat: Congress leader and police officer arrested for murdering latter’s live-in partner, held after 49 days

Congress leader Kiritsinh Jadeja and victim Sweety

Police Inspector Ajay Desai and his accomplice Congress leader Kiritsinh Jadeja were arrested by the Gujarat police on Saturday, 24 July, for murdering the former’s partner and burning her body.

As per reports, Desai- a Police Inspector heading the Vadodara rural Special Operations Group (SOG), was in a live-in relationship with one Sweety Patel (37). On June 04, the two had a fight over Desai’s legal marriage to another woman. On the same night, Desai smothered Sweety in their bedroom while she was asleep next to their two-year-old son.

Desai then wrapped the dead body in a quilt and loaded it in his commando jeep early in the morning. He then drove to an under-construction structure co-owned by Congress leader Kiritsinh Jadeja in Atalia village of Bharuch district. 

Jadeja reportedly was aware that Desai had murdered Sweety and assisted him in getting a place to dispose of the body. Jadeja offered his land to Desai to burn Sweety’s body. 

Desai searches ‘missing partner’

After murdering Sweety, Desai called her brother to come over and take care of their son as Sweety had “gone missing”. After burning Sweety’s body at Jadeja’s land, Desai returned to Vadodara to be with his legal wife but also pretended to be in search of Sweety. 

Jadeja, a candidate of the Congress party from Karjan Assembly Constituency in the bypolls in November 2020 and Desai have been booked under various sections of the Indian Penal Code. 

Desai could not handle the ‘social pressure’

Sweety’s murder case was transferred to the Crime Branch a week back. The matter was being investigated with the state’s Anti Terrorism Squad assistance.

Deputy Commissioner of Police, Ahmedabad DCB Chaitanya Mandlik in an interview to the Indian Express informed that Desai refused to undergo a narco test after which the officers counselled him to confess his crime.

During the investigation, it was revealed that Desai had planned to ditch Sweety as he could no longer handle the social pressure.

Desai and Sweety began living together in 2016 and have a two-year-old son together, However, in 2017, he also legally married an Ahmedabad-based woman, with whom he has a three-year-old daughter.

“It was going on fine for him for the first few years because his wife was based in Ahmedabad and would visit him at their Vadodara residence sometimes and on the rest of the days, he stayed with Sweety in Karjan. But about three months ago, his wife shifted to the Vadodara apartment and he was facing the music as Sweety was upset that he had to stay with his wife. She wanted him to divorce his wife and legalize their relationship. His wife, however, was unaware about his relationship with Sweety until the investigation into her missing case began, which is when he confessed to his wife that he had a live-in partner,” said Mandlik. 

The police are now awaiting DNA test results and examining the bloodstains found at their home. “We are examining whose blood it is that we found in the house. The reports are awaited. The further investigation in the case will continue with the DCB after we file a case of murder against the two accused at Karjan police station and formally arrest Desai and Jadeja,” Mandlik added. 

The Ahmedabad Detection of Crime Branch detained Desai and Jadeja 49 days after the alleged crime took place. The two have been booked under 302 for culpable homicide amounting to murder, 204 for causing disappearance of evidence, and 114 for committing the crime in presence of an abettor of the IPC.

OpIndia Staff: Staff reporter at OpIndia