Man held for killing estranged wife set to take son’s custody

Mumbai: A 36-year-old woman who was estranged from her husband and engaged in a legal battle over their children was brutally murdered, allegedly by her husband, in broad daylight at Mira Road on Friday.The man, Nadeem Khan (41), slashed her throat with a knife mid-street at Naya Nagar, causing her to collapse, the police said. Bystanders and a few policemen who were posted around the spot due to Friday prayers nabbed the husband. Amrin was rushed to a nearby hospital in an autorickshaw where she was declared ‘dead on arrival'.The estranged couple has two children — a 10-year-old daughter and a 2-year-old son. Amrin had left her husband's home over a year ago. Both had filed police complaints against each other.A court in Thane had in August issued an order granting interim custody of their school-going daughter to the father while the infant son was to be in the custody of the mother. Each parent had rights to visit the child not in hi/ her custody. The court order had cited the infant's "need for his mother's care and proper nourishment". However, both children were in Nadeem's custody so far.On Thursday, Amrin, along with two police personnel, tried unsuccessfully to retrieve her infant son from Nadeem's home. When the police visited Nadeem's flat to enforce the custody order, they found it locked. Nadeem claimed that his children had gone to Ajmer with their grandmother. On Friday, Amrin visited Naya Nagar police station regarding the custody issue. However, an event was going on at the station due to which she walked over to her daughter's school to verify Nadeem's claim that the children were out of town. "That is when Nadeem ambushed her..." said a police officer.Amrin had alleged that Nadeem had been instigating the their children against her, a claim Nadeem had countered. He had stated that Amrin had willingly left his home last year in June, leaving the children behind. He had claimed that Amrin was "mentally unstable and engaged in exorcism", but failed to substantiate these claims in court.Amrin's family has accused the police of not giving enough help to get the son's custody. They claimed that despite numerous visits to the police station, she was unable to meet her children. Local BJP activist and ayurveda doctor Suresh Yeole, who met Amrin at the police station hours before the killing, claimed that she seemed upset. "She spoke about making several visits to the police station," said Yeole. Deputy commissioner of police Prakash Gaikwad refuted allegations that Amrin had not been properly assisted by the police.
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