Blue drum murder | ‘When I woke up, I saw…’: 8-year-old son shares horrifying details of father’s murder by mom, lover

The eight-year-old son of the victim has recounted witnessing his father's murder, allegedly carried out by his mother and her boyfriend in Kishangarhbas, near Alwar, Rajasthan. The victim, Hansraj, also known as Suraj, was found dead on Sunday, his rotting body hidden in a blue drum on the rooftop of his rented house.  

According to the police, Hansraj was smothered by a pillow while intoxicated. His wife, Sunita, and her alleged boyfriend, Jitendra Sharma, reportedly poured salt into the drum, a desperate attempt to mask decomposition. After the murder, Hansraj's wife, Sunita, their three children- Harshal, 8, Nandini, 3, and Golu, six months old - and her boyfriend, fled the scene but were later arrested from a brick kiln 50 km away.

Harshal, the eldest child, described to the police how the murder happened.

“My father, mother, and uncle (their landlord's son) were drinking together. My mother only had a couple of pegs, but the uncle who killed my father drank a lot. And so did my father, after which he started beating my mother. My uncle tried to intervene, but my father said, ‘If you save her, I will kill you also,’” he told NDTV.

“Then uncle attacked my father,” he added.

The next morning, the boy recounted seeing his father's body on the bed and saw the accused placing the body in the drum. 

“When I woke up, I saw my father on the bed, then I went back to sleep, but again when I woke up, I saw uncle and my mother. They got scared because the landlord started asking for my father and threatened to go to the police, that's why uncle took us to a brick kiln,” Harshal said.

“But the brick kiln owner called the police, who took us away,” he added.

Harshal also mentioned that his father’s body was placed in a drum in the kitchen, while he was told by the accused that his father had died. Police said Hansraj was suffocated with a pillow while intoxicated, the report noted.

“They threw the water and put papa's body in the drum and placed it in the kitchen. I asked them why they were doing this, then they said papa has died,” Harshal said.

Harshal said that his father often beat his mother and burned her with cigarettes sometimes. He claimed his father once tried to cut his throat with a blade.

“He used to beat my mother frequently. He used to burn her with a beedi. He also used to beat me. In fact, on August 15, he attacked my neck with a blade,” Harshal said.

The murder happened on August 15, the report said, citing police. Hansraj’s body was discovered in the blue drum after the landlady noticed a foul smell coming from the drum.

Sunita and Jitendra had been together for four months, according to NDTV, citing police officials. Hansraj had discovered the relationship and frequently argued with Sunita. The children will be handed over to their paternal grandparents.