In Kanpur, four months after, Ekta Gupta, was reportedly murdered and buried by her gym trainer, her body was discovered near the district magistrate’s (DM) home in a spectacular incident that shocked people and left many issues unanswered.
Ekta Gupta, the wife of a prominent businessman Rahul Gupta, had been missing since June 24, police said on Sunday, adding that her remains were exhumed from the premises of Officers’ Club, which is a part of the district magistrate’s residence situated in a prime locality of the city. According to police, Vimal Soni, the gym trainer who was taken into custody on Saturday near Mall Road, admitted killing Ekta in her car and excavating a trench that was three feet broad and ten feet deep. He reportedly got the idea for this tomb from the movie “Drishyam, which he had seen for almost 20 times. Between the Club and the DM’s house is a wall, and the location is five feet from the campus sentry post. After four hours of excavation, in front of forensic specialists and her husband, who had held two press conferences accusing the police of not addressing his grievances, the body was exhumed at around 2 A.M.
CCTV footage from June 24 shows Ekta leaving Green Park gym at around 6.30 am. Police said Soni and Ekta got into a fight over the former’s engagement ceremony and stayed in her car for almost half an hour. At around seven in the morning, the vehicle was observed driving off the gym grounds. Soni was located around 7.45 am next to Sarsaiya Ghat, which is not far from the DM’s house. At 8:20 a.m., Soni was close to Jhari Baba Parao before disappearing. Shravan Kumar Singh, the deputy commissioner of police (DCP)-East, in the heat of the moment, he hit Ekta on the neck, causing her to faint and then strangled her with a rope and a piece of cloth, he informed us.
Rahul denied reports that Soni and his wife had an affair and claimed that Soni had tampered with her protein drink in order to kidnap her and steal her money. According to Ekta’s banker brother Himanshu, the cops had been careless in their approach and their theory was ludicrous.
Police discovered the vehicle, UP78 CE 4162, outside Soni’s sister’s home in Juhi Military Camp on June 25. A broken SIM card, a piece of cloth, a rope, and her hair clutch were discovered in the trunk.
Ekta’s family, however, asserted that forensic analysis of the evidence was not conducted until later. Rahul said reporters after the body was found, we continued saying that he kidnapped and killed her, but the police kept shifting the blame to a love entanglement. I sent letters to the PM’s office, the commissioner, and even relatives of the Delhi Intelligence Bureau, but nothing came of them.
The DCP claimed that Soni maintained his social media accounts while on the run despite not using his cell phone. Soni took out ₹2,000 from an Agra ATM. When he ran out of money, he went back to Kanpur, and his whereabouts were tracked down to Mall Road, where he was taken into custody.
According to the official, Soni first told the police that Ekta was in Kashmir on business before breaking down and confessing to killing her and disposing of her body in the Ganga. When it came to where he disposed of the body, the authorities discovered inconsistencies in his testimonies. After a while, he told the police where he had buried the body.
Harish Chander, additional commissioner of police said, “the accused dug a 10-foot grave to ensure the body decomposed quickly, so we are investigating whether the murder was premeditated. Soni was remanded to judicial detention after being presented to a magistrate on Sunday. The police will make sure the accused is tried in a court that moves quickly”.
WHYS AND HOWS DOT CRIME ANATOMY
1. According to the authorities, they have two video recordings of Vimal Soni on June 24 at the DM compound: one from the morning and one from midday. Why didn’t the police investigate his presence at the DM compound?
2. Why wasn’t his automobile forensically inspected for hints from the material in the trunk when it was discovered the following day outside his sister’s house?
3. According to the authorities, Soni drove the body to the Officers’ Club via a fence ten feet from the burial location. The automobile (without side mirrors) is 1,680 mm wide, and the gate is 1,676 mm wide. How was that accomplished?
4. The officers’ club’s gates are secured from the inside. At 7:15 a.m. on June 24, how did he open the iron doors and carry the body inside without anyone noticing?
5. The body was buried about seven feet from the sentry post at the DM’s apartment. Didn’t anyone hear the digging from so close?
6. What causes the inconsistencies in the officers’ statements? Soni dug the site, according to the Additional CP, while the DCP East asserted that the land had already been dug up for the purpose of planting saplings. Can saplings be planted in a 10-foot-deep hole?
7. According to the family, the cops assumed a romantic entanglement and failed to take action despite their concerns that she had been abducted and killed.
According to those in the sports and police departments who are aware of the specifics, Vimal Soni, a personal trainer to multiple IPS and IAS officers for the past 15 years, has had his behavior repeatedly questioned, but his purportedly strong ties have apparently shielded him. Following multiple complaints regarding his inappropriate behavior at the gym, especially towards women, Mudrita Pathak, the regional sports director at the time, terminated his position in 2022. But according to two people with knowledge, this decision was reversed due to pressure from a bureaucracy he taught.
The current RSD RN Singh ultimately terminated his contract after Rahul Gupta filed a FIR for kidnapping. An official stated, “the gym was built as part of the Smart City initiative, and the Guptas live close to the stadium”.
Ekta Gupta’s family wants a CBI investigation
The family of Ekta Gupta has claimed that several people helped gym trainer Vimal Soni bury her body at the officers’ club. Her spouse, Rahul Gupta, has demanded a CBI investigation. Rahul urged Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath to investigate this situation with the CBI and to ensure justice.
According to Additional CP Harish Chandra, “Police are investigating whether Soni planned and carried out the crime on his own or with help. All angles will be covered as we conduct a thorough investigation into the case”. It has been agreed by the police to verify all gym trainers in the city through police and intelligence. According to Law and Order’s additional CP, Harish Chandra, the four DCPs have been told to start the verification procedure tomorrow. “We shall undertake independent intelligence checks on trainers’ behavior. There will be severe consequences for anyone caught stepping over the lines,” he continued.
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