LUCKNOW, June 5 -- With the arrest of his wife and nephew, police have worked out the murder of a railway employee, whose body was recovered from a dry pond behind their house in Banthra on May 25, authorities said on Wednesday. According to additional DCP (south) Amit Kumawat, on the night of May 24, Manju Devi, 38, reported that her husband Siddhi Prasad had gone missing under mysterious circumstances. She told the police that her husband stepped out around 10:30pm and never returned. The next morning (May 25), his lifeless body with head injuries and signs of strangulation was discovered in a dry pond behind their house in Dariyapur village," Kumawat told reporters, pointing out that prima facie, it appeared to be an accidental death. "As police launched an investigation, inconsistencies in the statements of the deceased's wife emerged. Based on a tip-off from local sources, a joint team of Banthra police and surveillance cell of south zone uncovered the premeditated murder," DCP (south) Nipun Agarwal said. According to an official statement by police, Manju allegedly orchestrated the killing in cahoots with her husband's 25-year-old nephew, Akash Verma alias Lucky, suspected to be her lover. "During interrogation, Manju told the police that her husband was addicted to gambling, spent all his earnings on alcohol and had completely neglected their children's education and family needs," the statement said. Police said the duo roped in a third accomplice -- Sanjay Kashyap, a friend of Akash and a resident of Gonda -- who worked with a namkeen company in Lucknow. "Manju Devi allegedly promised him Rs.40,000 for the murder and paid Rs.5,000 in advance. "On the fateful night, Manju tipped off Akash that the house was empty as most family members were attending a wedding. Akash and Sanjay entered the home, strangled Siddhi Prasad with a rope, and then smashed his head with an iron pipe," the ADCP said. "The body was dragged and dumped in a dry pond behind the house. The killers even placed his slippers, phone, and clothes nearby to make it appear as an accidental death. The rope and iron pipe were later recovered from a nearby drain," he added. Initially, a case was registered under Section 103(1) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). It was later upgraded to include sections 238A and 353(3) after the suspects' confessions and recovery of key evidence....