Revenge killing, contract killers? Cops widen probe in DU professor murder; estranged husband claims alibi, 4 suspects at large

NEW DELHI: The estranged husband of Delhi University assistant professor Debosmita Paul has claimed before police that he was in Pune at the time of her murder.

The angle of revenge killing and the role of contract killers are also being probed, sources said.

Sources said the estranged husband’s statement had been recorded and his claims were being verified.

Police have also spotted two more unidentified persons on CCTV footage, who had entered the residential complex in east Delhi’s Vasundhara Enclave on the day of the crime.

The men had arrived at Paul’s housing society in a cab between 1pm and 6pm on Wednesday, the period during which police suspect the murder was committed.

The CCTV footage captured their presence inside the complex, but no corresponding entry was found in the visitors’ register maintained by guards, sources said.

The development comes a day after police began tracing a man and a woman, both masked, who were seen entering the complex around the same time.

According to sources, investigators had narrowed down on 13 people whose movements within the society during the period required verification. While nine have since been identified and ruled out, four — the two men and the masked man and woman — remain unidentified.

Guards told investigators that, apart from delivery personnel, visitors were often allowed entry without any verification.

Regarding the masked duo, guards told police that the man, who was walking ahead, and the woman following him had asked for directions to certain flats inside the complex. However, they could not recall the flat numbers, sources said.

Investigators are also examining Paul’s laptop, which was found open inside her apartment. “She may have been preparing material related to an educational programme before the device went into sleep mode,“ an officer said.