Poet Madhumita often travelled as minister’s ‘wife’

The UP police may be dragging their feet on the investigation into the murder of Madhumita Shukla, but with each passing day, strong evidenc...

The UP police may be dragging their feet on the investigation into the murder of Madhumita Shukla, but with each passing day, strong evidence of her proximity to state minister Amar Mani Tripathi is coming to light.

Political pressure may have stalled the probe but police sources have now revealed that Madhumita had several times mentioned herself as ‘‘wife of A M Tripathi’’ in a number of documents seized from her house. Also, counterfoils of air tickets found at the house — and seen by this reporter — show that she had travelled to Mumbai and several other places as ‘‘Mrs A M Tripathi’’.

Last November she travelled to Mumbai with the minister, the sources said, and the two stayed together at a five-star hotel. They had a major row when Madhumita went to the dance floor with a young man.

She was regularly visiting a private nursing home in the trans-Gomti area here for check-ups during her pregnancy and her name in the records was also mentioned as ‘‘Mrs A M Tripathi.’’ The nursing home staff was tightlipped but admitted to The Indian Express that she had been under their care during her pregnancy, refusing to divulge any details.

Police sources claimed her personal dairy has several details about her relationship with the BSP minister. This reporter got access to the pages where she mentioned a visit to Gorakhpur to attend a felicitation ceremony after Tripathi won the elections last year.

She wrote how the minister’s wife, Madhumani, barged into her room late at night and had a showdown with her over her relationship with her husband.

Madhumita also mentioned how she had campaigned for Tripathi in Laxmipur constituency from where he was contesting the assembly elections in February last year.

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Meanwhile, in a curious development, two constables of Mahanagar police station broke into Madhumita’s house in Paper Mill Colony on Wednesday night and left with a black bag when people started gathering outside the flat. They were unnerved by the crowd outside and left the lights switched on.

Madhumita’s neighbours told The Indian Express that the two policemen arrived at her flat with a locksmith who broke open the lock. When they switched on the lights, the neighbours thought the family had come back and turned up to express their condolences.

The two then emerged from the house with the bag, locked it up and left in a hurry.

The Mahanagar police, however, have denied that any of their men had been asked to search Madhumita’s house.

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However, they admitted that they had sent two constables to collect details about her from the neighbours.