Bihar man stages own kidnapping to help wife win village council polls

PATNA—In a bizarre incident, a man staged his own kidnapping to help his wife win elections for the post of village council chief or Mukhiya in Bihar.

The bizarre incident took place in Siwan district of Bihar on Saturday. The man has been arrested.

Reports said shortly before his wife Phulpati Devi was to file her nomination papers, Phuleshwar Yadav went mysteriously missing from the areas. The police later recovered his bike abandoned at an isolated place.

Suspecting it to be the kidnapping of the candidate’s husband, the local villagers registered angry protests before the police and demanded his immediate recovery.

The police soon began investigation into the matter, trying hard to recover the victim before it develops into a major issue ahead of polls.

Subsequently, the police kept tracking his mobile phone of the “victim” and then the entire truth came out.

During investigation it was found that the accused had taken shelter in a hotel in Patna while leaving his bike abandoned in his district town to create impression of his kidnapping.

“The accused had staged his kidnapping to ensure victory of his wife contesting the village council polls. He has been arrested and jailed,” a local police inspector Pramod Kumar told the media on Sunday.

As per the planning drawn up by the accused, he would have been found in an unconscious state outside a police station after some days and his recovery by the police have would created the impression that he was really kidnapped by his rivals to ensure defeat of his wife, the accused told his interrogators.

“This would have created a sympathy wave in favour of his wife and she would have easily won the polls,” was how he revealed his plan to the police.