A Hindu man gave a confessional statement before a magistrate Saturday that the reason he 'cremated' his Muslim wife's body after her death was to hide the evidence that he killed her. Bablu Dey, 30, gave his statement to the court of Senior Judicial Magistrate (Forest Court) Begum Anjuman Ara today under Section 164 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, almost three weeks after his wife Yasmin Akhtar Annie, 24, died, and he cremated her body without informing her family members. "My wife lost consciousness and fell on the ground as I whacked her on the head and struck her on the face in the heat of the moment. Then I called on a physician from a local pharmacy who declared her dead. Next, I burnt her body on the advice of the influential locals to prevent any police action," Bablu told the court. Complainant Roxana Begum told the police that her daughter Yasmin, a resident of Chattogram city's Bandartila, worked for an apparel factory, and Bablu was employed at a local saloon. "She got married to Bablu, who identified himself as Muslim when they formed a romantic attachment. However, soon after marriage Bablu's full religious identity was revealed, and Yasmin was tortured over their differences. They have a one-and-a-half-year-old daughter," she said. On August 3, Roxana got to know that Yasmin was murdered by her husband and then quickly 'cremated' to prevent any police action. What is shocking here is that Yasmin had never converted to Hinduism. "I filed a case with the Chattogram Chief Judicial Magistrate Court over the incident. Bablu was among the 18 people accused in the case," said Roxana. Also read: Mother, son arrested after 10 months of murder Next, Boalkhali police arrested Bablu Thursday night. The plaintiff's lawyer Advocate Hasan Ali said, "Bablu told the court that he cremated his wife's body on the advice of a few influential locals. After recording his statement, the court gave an order to send him behind bars." Also read: 3 arrested over mason's mysterious death in Chattogram

A case was filed against nine people over the killing of Major (retd) Sinha Md Rashed Khan on Marine Drive road in Teknaf.