Ghaziabad horror: Daughter’s refusal to marry led to murder of property dealer; accused stalked victim over six weeks

GHAZIABAD: A rejected marriage proposal and months of mounting obsession resulted in the murder of a Greater Noida property dealer, police said on Sunday after the arrest of a 22-year-old medical representative.

The accused, Deepak Goswami, allegedly shot Mahipal (45) after the victim's daughter refused to marry him - just days before her scheduled wedding with another man.According to police, Goswami, a B.Pharma student from Meerut who lived in Surajpur, met Mahipal's eldest daughter on social media two years ago. Their online friendship soon turned into frequent conversations, and Goswami became intent on marrying her.

Last year, he visited Mahipal's house to formally propose marriage, but both the woman and her family declined his advances.Three months ago, Mahipal arranged the marriages of two of his daughters, including the one Goswami had been pursuing. The weddings were set for Dec 10. Told about it, Goswami's fixation intensified. "For the past year, he was pressuring the woman and her family members to agree to the marriage," said Diksha Singh, ACP-2 of central Noida.

Police said Goswami began stalking Mahipal, tracking his daily movements for over six weeks. On Thursday, as the property dealer was returning home on his scooter after discussing wedding preparations with a friend, Goswami confronted him on a deserted stretch in Badalpur. Following a heated argument about marriage proposal, Goswami allegedly fired two shots into Mahipal's chest, killing him on the spot. "The accused had been following Mahipal for the past month and a half.

On the day of the incident, CCTV footage captured Goswami trailing Mahipal on a bike. Reviewing footage from previous days, we saw the same pattern," an officer said. A team was formed to investigate the case, and clips from over 50 CCTV cameras were scrutinised before Goswami was identified and arrested. He confessed to the crime, saying he believed Mahipal's death might force the family to reconsider the marriage. A case under Section 103 (murder) of BNS and under the Arms Act was registered against Goswami.