A lonely bridge. A heated argument and nine terrifying minutes. Police say these were the final moments before Ashwini alias Aashi Dey (29) was pushed to death by her boyfriend at Kanhan river bridge. Police believe 29-year-old Aashi Dey spent her final moments arguing with her alleged boyfriend before she was pushed off the bridge onto the rocks below. The murder, they suspect, took place between 2.08 am and 2.17 am on Monday. The accused, Ashish alias Monu Kishor Manpiya (31), a history-sheeter from Bhilgaon, was arrested within 24 hours by Kanhan police. A court has remanded him to police custody till August 11.

 

According to the investigation, Ashish reached Aashi’s house late on Sunday evening. She was not at home. He waited for her outside. When Aashi returned, she told her mother that she was going to drop Ashish before returning home. Instead, the two continued roaming on his scooter for several hours. Police said they travelled through Tajbagh, Kamptee Road, Khaparkheda and nearby areas before finally reaching the old Kanhan bridge around 2 am. Investigators suspect the couple had consumed MD. Police also said both had criminal records. Ashish is believed to have several cases registered against him, while Aashi also had two cases. Police said the couple stopped at a secluded spot on the old bridge.

 

There, Aashi allegedly pressurised Ashish to marry her. She also demanded a Friendship Day gift. The argument soon turned violent. During questioning, the accused allegedly admitted that Aashi had been insisting on marriage. Police suspecting that Ashish planned that if she died, all his problems and criminal cases connected to her would end. Instead of pushing her into the flowing part of the river, police said Ashish allegedly threw her from a portion of the bridge where there was little water but several large rocks below. It made her survival almost impossible. A Railway trackman unknowingly became the key witness. At around 2.01 am, the trackman clicked a selfie during his patrol and shared it in the railway staff group. A few minutes later, he heard a loud sound from the bridge. Using a torch, he looked towards the spot and found the woman lying below after the fall.

 

He immediately alerted the police. His statement became one of the most important pieces of evidence in the investigation. Police also examined CCTV footage collected from different locations. The footage allegedly showed Ashish riding towards Kanhan around 2.08 am. Another camera later captured him returning alone at about 2.17 am. This timeline led investigators to conclude that the murder took place within those crucial nine minutes. After the incident, Ashish allegedly went to the Panchmukhi Hanuman Temple in Khaparkheda. He later returned to Bhilgaon and parked his scooter at his house in an apparent attempt to avoid suspicion. Meanwhile, Kanhan police launched a massive search operation. Acting on a tip-off, police tracked him to Automotive Chowk in Nagpur, where he was detained and later arrested. A murder case under Section 103(1) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) had been registered based on the complaint lodged by the Railway trackman. The investigation was carried out under the guidance of Senior Superintendent of Police Dr Harssh A Poddar, Additional SP Anil Mhaske and SDPO Santosh Gaikwad. Kanhan Police Inspector Vaijayanti Mandavdhare led the probe.