Chandrapur man held for dousing sleeping father-in-law with petrol at Kothari home

A family dispute in the Kothari police station area of Chandrapur district took a dangerous turn when a man allegedly poured petrol on his elderly father-in-law in an attempt to kill him. According to police, a major tragedy was averted because family members rushed in on time. Police have detained the accused, Rahul Dattatray Ramteke.

According to information from police and the complaint, Nikhil Diwakar Mavlikar, a resident of Ward No. 4 in Kothari, came to the police station and lodged an oral complaint. His 34-year-old sister, Deepika, is a round officer with the Forest Development Corporation of Maharashtra and works at Bamni-Talodhi. Her husband, Rahul Ramteke (38, a resident of Kothari), works as a private contractor. Deepika had been staying at her parental home in Kothari for the past seven to eight months on maternity leave.

Earlier, on August 31, 2026, Deepika had gone to her husband. It is alleged that Rahul quarrelled with her and beat her over the trivial matter of why she had not viewed his WhatsApp status. When Nikhil went to intervene, Rahul allegedly struck him on the neck with a sharp weapon and injured him. A case was registered at the police station over that incident, and Deepika had been staying at her parental home since.

The latest incident took place on Monday, October 26, 2026. At around 12 noon, Deepika went to her husband's house to collect her clothes and belongings. Rahul flatly refused to hand them over and Deepika returned. At around 3 pm, while Deepika and her family were at home, Rahul sent a threatening message to her mobile phone that read "coming to commit murder". Fear spread through the entire family on seeing the message.

Within 10 to 15 minutes of the threat, Rahul opened the gate and walked straight into the house. At that time, Nikhil's 65-year-old father, Diwakar Baburao Mavlikar, was lying on a cot in the porch, looking at his mobile phone. It is alleged that Rahul shouted, "I will burn and stab each one of you to death," and poured petrol, which he had brought in a plastic bottle, over his father-in-law as he slept. He was taking out a matchbox from his pocket to set him on fire when Nikhil and Deepika rushed in and overpowered him.

In the scuffle, Rahul pulled out a sharp knife from his waist to free himself, but Deepika showed presence of mind and snatched the knife from his hand and threw it away. Hearing the noise, relatives from the neighbourhood, Sapna Sanjay Chandekar, Sanyam alias Nikki Chandekar and Riyaz Shaikh, reached the spot and held Rahul down. Meanwhile, Nikhil immediately phoned the police station and reported the incident.

As soon as police were informed, Rahul tried to flee, but Nikhil caught him again outside the house. In anger, Rahul slapped and punched Nikhil on the face and bit him hard on the left hand, injuring him seriously. Within a short time, a team from Kothari police station reached the spot and immediately took Rahul Dattatray Ramteke into custody.

On Nikhil's complaint, Kothari police have registered a case against Rahul under Sections 333, 118(1), 115(2), 351(2), 351(3) and 109(1) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) 2023. Sub-Inspector Ravindra Atmaram Ingle is conducting further investigation. There is deep anger in the area over the sensational incident arising from a family dispute.