Tantrik, 42, who was arrested for plotting to kill a businessman, died in police custody in Gujarat’s Ahmedabad on Sunday after confessing to killing 12 people by giving them chemical-laced drinks, police said.
An official said that Nawalsingh Chawda, who was going to commit a crime after sharing the plan for the taxi business, was arrested by the Sarkhez police around 1 am on 3rd November.
He said the police detained Chavda till 3 pm on November 10 to allow further investigation into his occult practices and possible involvement in human sacrifice.
“On Sunday around 10 o’clock in the morning, after Chavda fell ill, he was taken to the civil hospital in an ambulance, but the doctor declared him dead when he reached there. “The accused has admitted to 12 murders during interrogation and all of them died due to consumption of sodium nitrite,” said the officer.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Shivam Verma said the accused had confessed to 12 murders by consuming sodium nitrite mixed with water as part of a witchcraft ritual.
Chawda confessed to killing one person in Ahmedabad, six in Surendranagar, along with three of his family members, three in Rajkot, and one each in Wankaner (Morbi district) and Anjar (Kutch district), Verma said.
He said the accused confessed to killing a man whose dead body appeared to be a road accident in Aslali area of Ahmedabad in August 2021. Later, the post-mortem revealed that he died of poisoning.
Investigation also revealed that the accused had killed his grandmother 14 years ago and his mother and uncle a year ago, Verma said.
According to the police, Chawda had purchased sodium nitrite, a chemical used in dry cleaning, from a laboratory in his hometown Surendranagar.
Several of his victims died of heart attacks due to poisoning, while the nature of death of some others is under investigation, the official said.
Chavda learned about the chemical from another tantric. He said that after consuming the substance, the effect will be felt within 15 to 20 minutes and death will occur due to heart attacks and other causes.
The accused called himself “Buwaji” and declared that he had the power to perform magic and miracles. According to the police, there is also his ashram in Vadhawan in Surendranagar.
He would offer to multiply his victims’ wealth or solve their problems, they said.
The police recovered incriminating evidence from Chawda’s car, including items used in worship and white powder.