An Indian man has been arrested after planting an explosive device inside a home theatre system and gifting it to his former lover and her husband on their wedding day with the intention to kill the couple.
Local police from the Indian state of Chhattisgarh cracked the case a day after the electronic device exploded in the Kabirdham district, killing the groom Hemendra Merawi (30) and his brother Rajkumar (32) on Tuesday while they were setting it up. The blast also injured several other members of the family, including a 1.5-year-old child.
Sarju Wanted to Take Revenge Over Her Former's Lover's Marriage to Hemendra
The home theatre system was gifted by accused Sarju Markam (33), a married man from Chhapla village in Balaghat district of neighbouring Madhya Pradesh, they said, officials said on Wednesday.
According to police, Sarju was previously in a relationship with the 29-year-old bride and insisted that she become his second wife. However, her family had her marriage arranged to Hemendra, who had no clue about her history with Sarju.
Furious at this, Sarju decided to take revenge and rigged the home theatre system before gifting it to the newlyweds, who tied the knot last week, police said.
Sarju Rigged the Device to Blow When Turned On
Investigators said Sarju purchased the electronic device and stuffed it with 2kg of explosives inside the speakers and rigged the IED to explode upon electrical contact, which would happen when the device was turned on.
Sarju used to work in the blasting department at a crusher plant in Indore, so he could lay his hands on explosives and knew how to put together a bomb, say police. He went to the wedding on March 31, presented the gift to a family member without being recognized, and quietly slipped out, said an officer.
The family were thrilled to see the wedding gift, which had no name or address mentioned on it, three days after the wedding and decided to plug it in, causing it to explode. The impact of the blast was such that it blew the ceiling off and the walls of the room caved in.
Investigators apprehended Sarju after they did some digging into the couple's past and were told about a man who was extremely disturbed ever since the couple's wedding was announced. Sarju later admitted to rigging the home theatre system as an act of revenge. He has been charged with murder as well as under the Explosives Act.
