Ex-DGP spanner in maid murder case: Meghalaya cops

Junior colleagues of Meghalaya’s ex-police chief WR Marbaniang have accused him of trying to put them off a case involving the murder of a maid in his wife’s house.

Rinehskhem Kharsohnoh, the former DGP’s 26-year-old domestic help, was found murdered in his house on March 7 this year. Marbaniang was replaced by Bijon K Dey Sawian soon after the murder in order to facilitate the investigation.

However, East Khasi Hills district superintendent of police AR Mawthoh, told the court last week that the ex-DGP tried to mislead the investigation team besides asking the police not to register a homicide case.

According to Mawthoh, the ex-DGP insisted that the maid had committed suicide by using a traditional Khasi knife found lying near her left hand. “Marbaniang instructed us to search for a suicide note, but there wasn’t any,” Mawthoh said, adding that he had found the maid’s head almost detached from the body.

Shillong City SP M Kharkrang, too, blamed Marbaniang for trying to dissuade them from investigating further. “We decided to register a suo motu murder case on the basis of the autopsy report, but the former DGP asked me to not to registering the case without his knowledge and direction,” he said.

Kharkrang added: “Marbaniang directed me to wait for some more time and said that he had even requested IGP (Special Branch) SB Singh to wait for his instruction.”

Officer in charge of the local police station UP Singh and sub-inspector of a beat house MN Khan also accused the ex-DGP of trying to interfere in their investigation.

Incidentally, the police arrested Arwil CH Sangma, the cook of the former DGP, on June 9. Sangma confessed to killing Rinehskhem—he was in love with her—after a verbal duel. But following the statements of four policemen against the ex-DGP, the CID is investigating if Sangma has owned up to shield other possible culprits.