A 22-year-old woman was beaten to death and her husband injured after being attacked by a relative who suspected the couple of having a role in getting him fired from his job as a labourer, police said.

The incident was reported from South Delhi’s Nizamuddin on Thursday morning.

The alleged killer, Ratiram, also suspected the couple of trying to electrocute him, which prompted him to attack the couple with a baton, said Chinmoy Biswal, deputy commissioner of police (South East). Police identified the woman as Sita, who lived with her husband Mangal and their six-month-old child in a jhuggi under a flyover in Nizamuddin. The duo worked as labourers for a Public Works Department contractor and were currently working on the laying of a road, said the DCP.

Mangal’s cousin, Ratiram, who lived under the same flyover, too had taken up work with the same contractor. “But earlier this week, Ratiram had lost his job. He suspected the couple of bad mouthing about him, leading to him getting fired,” said the DCP.

The incident took place around 1.30am on Thursday, when a “drunk” Ratiram was walking towards his jhuggi. “He happened to step on a live wire and receive an electric shock. He suspected that Mangal and his wife had a hand even in his electrocution,” said the DCP.

Ratiram allegedly responded by picking up a baton and attacking Mangal.

“When Sita tried to intervene, he attacked her as well,” said the officer. The couple was later rushed to a hospital where Sita was pronounced brought dead. Police said that Ratiram was nabbed from Sarai Kale Khan while he was trying to flee from Delhi.

First Published: Jun 21, 2019 05:24 IST