MP: Man kills live-in-partner to avoid marriage; saree-clad, jewellery-worn body found in fridge after a year

A man reportedly killed his live-in-partner and kept her dead body inside a refrigerator for nearly a year in Dewas, Madhya Pradesh. The crime surfaced after her decomposed dead body was recovered from the refrigerator in a house after complaints by neighbours, reported Press Trust of India on Friday.

Pratibha’s dead body, clad in a saree, was tied along with a noose around her neck and stored inside a refrigerator. The accused had kept the refrigerator in a house he had taken on rent in Dewas.

Accused Sanjay Patidar had been living in a rented house in Dewas since June 2023. He vacated the house in 2024 but continued to keep his belongings in a study room and the master bedroom, reported PTI, citing Dewas Superintendent of Police Puneet Gehlot. Forty-one-year-old Patidar had said to his landlord that he would vacate the remaining portion of the house after some time.

“Shrivastava had rented his house to one Sanjay Patidar of Ujjain in June 2023. A year later, Patidar vacated the house but continued to keep his belongings in a study room and the master bedroom. He told Shrivastava he would vacate this portion later,” Gehlot told reporters adding that Patidar used to visit the house once in a while.

Neighbours complained of a foul smell from the house

Months after Patidar left the house, neighbours started complaining to the house owner about a foul smell coming from it. The house was located in Vrindawan Dham and owned by Dhirendra Shrivastava.

The incident came to light after the refrigerator stopped working due to a power cut, and a foul smell started emanating from that portion of the house.The police have arrested Sanjay Patidar from Ujjain and an investigation has been initiated in the matter.

Sanjay killed his partner to avoid formalise their relationship

Sanjay had told the police that he had been living in a relationship with Pratibha for the past five years. However, he shifted to Dewas with her in 2023. At that time, he told neighbours that she was his wife.

Their relationship strained after Pratibha started pushing Sanjay to formalise their relationship, reported Hindustan Times. However, Sanjay refused to do so and they used to argue frequently about it.