Killer 'eunuch' held after five years

A city-based construction worker, who had killed his wife over suspected infidelity in 2009, almost got away with the murder by pretending to be a eunuch and camping with them at Kalyan railway station.

However, the long arm of the law caught him after an acquaintance who spotted him after a gap of five years alerted the Pune police crime branch. Two policemen of crime branch (unit IV) camped at Kalyan railway station for a week, watched each of the 50 eunuchs before arresting the fugitive Prakash alias Munna Hanumant Kutke (35) of Chandanagar.

According to the police, Prakash lived as `Munnibai’ and used to beg for alms at the station. To ensure that his facade is perfect, he even joined a group of eunuchs and would pay huge money to the ‘guru’ that he had made according to their tradition.

However, his five-year freedom was cut short when one of his acquaintance spotted him at the station notwithstanding his new ‘avatar’. The acquaintance, on his return to Pune, alerted the police.

Posing as homeless, constables Dipak Kharat and Dnyaneshwar Bharti lived on the platforms of Kalyan railway station before apprehending Prakash.

According to the police, Prakash was at large after allegedly killing his wife Laxmi over suspicion of infidelity on December 27, 2008.

Speaking to dna, senior police inspector Arun Walture said, “After getting information about Prakash, we sent a team to Kalyan. We found that Prakash was known there as ‘Munnibai’. He would spend the nights on platforms, wake up early in the morning and would beg alms in trains. He had become a member of the group of 50 eunuchs in the area and would earn Rs2,000 per day by begging alms. Later, other eunuchs came to know that Prakash was a man but they did not ‘disown’ him as he had become a follower of their `guru’ and would daily pay him Rs500 . He would spend the remaining money on gambling and liquor.”