Man murders lover over marriage dispute, dumps body in ravine

 

By Sumesh Rajan | September 1, 2025

Ratnagiri, Maharashtra, INDIA: Police have arrested a man in Ratnagiri district for allegedly murdering his 26-year-old girlfriend and dumping her body in a ravine at a mountain pass after repeated arguments over his decision to marry another woman. The accused, identified as Durvas Darshan Patil, was taken into custody nearly two weeks after the victim, Bhakti Jitendra Mayekar, went missing.

According to police, Mayekar was last seen on August 17, when she told her family she was going to meet a friend. When she did not return home, her family filed a missing person’s complaint.

Investigators traced her mobile phone location to the Khandala area and soon focused their probe on Patil, who was known to be in a relationship with her. He was picked up for questioning and eventually confessed to the crime, police said.

During interrogation, Patil admitted that he and Mayekar frequently argued over his planned marriage to another woman. On August 17, during one such altercation, he allegedly strangled her to death and then disposed of her body by dumping it in a ravine at Amba Ghat, with the help of two associates.

Police later recovered Mayekar’s body from the location based on Patil’s statement. Along with him, his two aides — Vishwas Vijay Pawar and Sushant Shantaram Naralkar — have also been arrested for allegedly helping him dispose of the body.

Ratnagiri Police said that the trio has been booked for murder and destruction of evidence. 

Further investigation is underway.