The Tandoor Murder

by Maxwell Pereira

Naina Sahni’s murder and the discovery of her body being burnt in a tandoor in a restaurant in the heart of Delhi shook the country’s conscience and galvanized the criminal and justice system. What exactly happened on the night of the murder? How did the accused, Sushil Sharma, Naina’s partner and Youth Congress leader, manage to stave off conviction for more than a decade? What were the twists and turns in the case and how did the investigation manage to stay the course? ACP Maxwell Pereira, who was in charge of the case, gives us an insider’s account of events as they unfolded, based on his notes and investigation reports as well as the many stories that appeared in the media.

A page-turner of a book, forthright and dramatic, with unexpected nuggets of information and insights into the way policing and the legal and political systems work in India by someone who has seen it all.

Genres: Nonfiction, India, Mystery

280 pages, Hardcover

Published March 20, 2018

About the author

Maxwell Pereira is one of India’s best known (retired) cops, winner of gallantry awards and with a reputation for honesty and courage. He is now a familiar face on television debates.

Reviews

[Ahtims · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars rounded to 4.
I barely remember the tandoor case .. And this book was an eye opener to me - it showed me the rotten side of Indian politics and bureaucracy.
Susheel Sharma , a rising congress goonda, kills his wife suspecting her infidelity and tries to burn her in a tandoor .. And from here the gruesome case unfolds.

I am overwhelmed and scared at the state of lawlessness that is prevalent in this country .

[Roma · Rating 5 out of 5]

Name of the book – The Tandoor Murder

Author: Maxwell Pereira

Publisher: Context

Number of pages: 296

Genre: Crime non-fiction

Summary:

The book starts with two people on a night burning old posters of elections in a tandoor. The fire is huge and attracts the police officials out on patrol. They are stunned on finding the two people were not just burning old posters but also trying to dispose off a dead body in a tandoor. The book is a real life account of a murder and it’s case proceedings. It was a murder that was publicised a lot in the media.

My Take:

To start with, the book narrates the incident of finding the body of Naina Sahni being burnt in Tandoor by her husband. It did give me goosebumps. The book is a very well written account of search for the main suspect, the family drama, case proceedings and a satisfactory verdict. The book is written by the then Commissioner of police Maxwell Pereira who was handling the case.

The account has lots of wtf moments. You feel it’s something happening in a movie or a serial. Saddened to read the kind of tactics the lawyers undertake to make the case lengthy. One will feel all the hatred for the prime suspect who after committing such a henious crime, changes colours and tries his best to get freedom by following lies and deceit. It is equally stunning to read about the transformation of the murderer to a calmed down person after 20 years of the crime.

The account is narrated in a fast paced manner making it an interesting read. The author has not just given a true picture of the happenings but has tried to provide much needed explanations and examples of the context in which the narrative has been penned.

Post reading the book, your faith in law does restore. Though late but a good verdict was announced and justice prevails. Hats off to the strength of Delhi Police who inspite of case being dragged for long and many witnesses turning hostile stood for the cause of justice.

My rating 4.5/5 for this stunning read.

[Shilpa Garg · Rating 4 out of 5]

I remember reading about this shocking and gruesome murder in 1995. A man brutally killed his wife and later burned her body in his own restaurant's tandoor. This book from a decorated retired-cop is an eye-opener about criminals, judiciary, politics and covers the entire investigation and trial.

[Meenal]

19%

Least interested in such gruesome accounts

[Aryan Prasad · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don't read a lot of Real Crime, but this book was excelled. Truly a blow-by-bow account.

[Manas Barpande · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Tareekh par tareekh milti h your honour but insaaf nahi milta.."

That one iconic monologue of Sunny Deol has been, sadly, the defining trait of Indian Judiciary even after all these years. And this book by a former cop, who personally handled the infamous 'Tandoor kaand' of Delhi, sheds some more light on the working (or, not-working) of judicial processes and how an amalgamation of money, power, and hostility is used to exploit the legal loopholes despite all the evidences.

[H · Rating 5 out of 5]

Phew, what a book. Remember this case, during my graduation days. This book fills in all the gaps abt this case, we knew n read abt.

Extremely gripping narrative, more importantly portrays how ppl wid power n money can play the judiciary and get it dance to their tunes. The author couldn’t be more explicit!

[Anantha Giri · Rating 3 out of 5]

Disclaimer:
1) This book has been in my kindle for a long time and the only reason I picked it up was its similarities with the Shraddha case
2) Several aspects of Shraddha case are still in 'alleged' case. Things might change at the end of this saga and so will this review.

Review:
The Tandoor Murder is a riveting blow-by-blow account of the infamous Tandoor Murder where Delhi Youth Congress leader Sushil Sharma murdered his wife Naina Sahi and tried to cover up by burning her body in a hotel tandoor at the heart of New Delhi. Thanks to the presence of mind displayed by constable Kunju and witnesses this act is thwarted and one of the associates is caught red-handed. What followed is a sordid saga with media voyeurism, slow moving justice and finally conviction of Sushil.

It is hard not to notice the similarities between Shraddha case and Naina case. Both were disowned by their families for daring to make their own path and hence lost a crucial social support at a time when they needed it badly. Both suffered repeated and violent abuse that took a toll on their mental health. Deep within their heart both knew that their partners would murder them brutally. On both occasions media let their imagination run free and took liberty with the facts of the case. In the case of Tandoor murder the limbs were not broken though media has maintained it did. In case of Shraddha murder media has come up with stuff like Aftab had kheema with remains of Shraddha. Political parties were quick to gain political capital in both murders.

There are differences though. Aftab is not an influential political figure like Sushil. In the case of Sushil the crime was caught during the cover up while in the case of Aftab it has been a while and hence there are difficulties in establishing murder in the absence of the body of the victim.

It is a mix of crime novel and crime procedural except all of this happened in real life. Personally what stood out for me the most was Pereira's sympathy towards the victim. Here was a spirited, young woman who had achievements (like pilot licence) which if it had been a man's would have made any parent proud. Instead it brought her isolation from her own family. Her live-in relationships with men of different faiths gave the media license to question her character bordering towards victim-shaming. Add to it stories which made her seem like an escort to senior congress politicians. Both her body and character were defiled by people and it is a sad state of affairs that many of these are repeated in the case of Shraddha's case as well. One can only hope that the wheels of justice don't turn slow for Shraddha as it did in the case of Naina (8.5 years).

[Preetam Chatterjee · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was initially getting the Mary Maloney vibes. Lamb to the Slaughter. Roald Dahl. Dahl’s tale is a soul-touching one, reflecting the deviations in human nature. Human nature is quite hesitant.

While a person cherishes the feelings of love, trust, warmth and devotion at one point of time, these feelings can easily be blown away with any fit of an unkind “wind, and be replaced by feelings of abhorrence, trickery, and anger. ‘Lamb to the Slaughter’ speaks of Mary, a loving woman, devoted to her husband. However, when she learns that her better half has decided to abandon her, she feels the pangs of disloyalty.

Her domestic comfort is disrupted, and we see shortly the other side of her nature; a strong woman who wastes no time in killing her husband brutally.

The Tandoor Saga, which shook India in the late nineties has Sushil Sharma, a brat, a very powerful youth Congress leader, who shot dead his wife Naina. And he had done so over suspicion of her having an extramarital affair. Thereafter, Sushil would like a surgeon’s precision chop off the cadaver stuff it in a oversized clay oven on the roof of a popular restaurant, managed by his friend.

Into the following chapters has the author divided the book:

1. Tandoori Night
2. Kunju’s Discovery
3. Twenty-four Hours
4. The Crime Scene
5. Family Trouble
6. Murder Most Foul
7. The Earth Shakes
8. Getaway
9. Medical Complications
10. Opening Gambit
11. The Noose Draws Tight
12. The Circus Comes to Town
13. Contrition and Recriminations
14. Corpus of Evidence
15. Ravi Naina Sahni
16. Hanging the Man
17. Let the Games Begin
18. Trials and Intrigues
19. Wheels of Justice
20. On With the Motley
21. Judgement
22. Aftermath

And thereafter all pandemonium would break loose.

What do you carry from this book you know?

This world is like a banana. But just for the lucky monkeys.

Give it a go. One of the most vivid descriptions of a true crime that you can read.

[Vijay Anand Tripathi · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a first hand narration of the famous "Tandoor Murder Case", from decorated retire-cop Mr. Maxwell Pereira. The victim "Ravi Naina Sahni" was first murdered, chopped & was attempted to "burn" by DYCP chief Sushil in Jul'95. The simple imagination of such a gruesome, fierce & heinous crime is enough to send chill down the spine. The book covers the "police" side of story from discovery to prosecution. It covers all the various aspects from convict, the victim's family, media & judiciary trials (& drama). It can be said as Indian version of famous OJ Simpson case., though in this case the justice triumphs (finally in the end).

It highlights the how the rich, powerful & political fixers can bend, twist, manipulate & exploit the loop holes in the Indian judiciary system (which has not undergone much of reform from imperial times).

Interesting way to narrate, it would highlight how the prime convict uses lies, deceit & deception to his advantage, and it took nearly 9 years to deliver the justice. It also highlights how bureaucracy, judiciary & media are sometime unreasonably. Fast-paced with proper referencing, explaining briefly the system it gives very contextual examples & explanations.

I always thought that police police do a thankless job. They are the law-enforcers & sometime they go way beyond the line to help the society. Indian Police esp. has solved many such cases which have help to restore the faith in law enforcement agencies, despite unfavorable circumstances. One more such case was "Nirbhaya" - which i thought was highlighted through Netflix series "Delhi Crime". I would love to see this as another addition in "Delhi Crime".

Very much recommended as an interesting & insightful read.
Good Job Mr. Pereira..

[Judah Kosterman · Rating 2 out of 5]

The first chapter reads like Lennie Briscoe narrating the Indian subcontinent’s version of the OJ Simpson case. Would that this editorial vision had been applied to the rest of the book.

In 1995, a 40ish political fixer and backroom dealmaker shot the wife he’d never publicly admitted to having, made a poor attempt at crime scene clean up, loaded her body into his car, and drove to a restaurant in a high-end Delhi neighborhood where the fixer and the restaurant manager attempted to cremate her in an outdoor barbecue (tandoor). Leaping flames from the kindling and accelerant they used caused neighbors to call the police. The manager was caught in the act. The fixer fled but was in custody a week later, having turned himself in at a small-town police station. With the fixer’s political connectedness hanging over them, the police and medical examiners completed their investigation and filed charges by the end of a month.

The trial lasted eight-and-a-half years (not a typo), making this the most unbalanced episode of Law & Order ever. Evidence was lost, witnesses were tampered with, the defense team changed three times, the judge grandstanded, the tabloids shrieked, and that’s all outside of the complications peculiar to the Indian legal and judicial systems. All of this is presented in an uninspired prose peppered with dropped names and asides like “But more on that later.”

The biggest problem is the narrator. The author was the lead police detective. Once the investigation portion is done, both the author and the reader end up on the sidelines, annoyed and stuck waiting endlessly for a verdict.

[Qube · Rating 4 out of 5]

In the midst of consuming a string of crime fiction, it is nice to read an account of real-life crime narrated by the investigating officer. It gives you a perspective of how different real-life crime-solving is from the fictional version. There are no Holmes-like sleuthing or “Ah-ha!” moments. Just routine questioning and investigating. The killer is identified very early by some routine questioning.

The nub of the account is bringing him to book. Given the ubiquitous incompetence in the different arms of our administration, the glacial pace and arbitrariness of our judicial system and the ability of the powerful to influence witnesses, convicting someone even in an open-and-shut case takes a decade or more. The impunity with which both the incompetent and the crooked operate is appalling. And scary.

This is an interesting read for those who consume crime fiction – it's like a cold shower. While the cerebral challenges posed by good detective mysteries leave us on a high, books like this one leave us grounded.

Many real-life accounts are poorly written and resort to sensationalism. This book does neither. It’s well-written and factual. It does lack pace and intrigue in some places (the last few chapters), but then, it is showcasing real life. Every single chapter cannot be an adrenaline-pumping one.

All in all, a very worthwhile read. Recommended.

[Sanjana · Rating 4 out of 5]

As a person who is born in the aftermath of whole chaos of the Tandoor murder case and never really heard of it, this was an eye opener. Of how deeply rooted corruption, bad politics, etc are in the system (which I, who never knew of this case before thought corruption increased in my times). Politics, corruption, women, feminism, religion, hypocrisy, nepotism, unfairness, student life, police, government, media list is never ending because this case brings to light all the aspects every person come across, directly or indirectly. Something we turn a blind eye to. Dare I say, even though it was never a topic or main focus of things ever in the book, but i noticed this thing repeatedly, that a religious person need not be the ideal person the society always mark them as, which somehow feels relevant to state here in these times.

It is worth mentioning that this it's a cherry on top because it is written by and from a perspective of a person involved in the case from the very start to end.

It's reading book, not for the literature but for understanding the society we live in.
This book covers not just the politics and corruption, but other devils we need to fight together as a society and on individual level.

[Ramaswamy Raman · Rating 4 out of 5]

A remarkable muder story and the lengthy case that followed forms the main plot of this book written by an officer from the police force leading the case.
The tandoor murder case which happened in mid nineties created quite a stir as it involved an important political youth congress member who had contacts with the top members of the party.
Sushil Sharma, how he killed his wife and tried to burn the dead body in a tandoor , tried to escape and how the entire case was conducted is unbelievable and surely worth a read.
The reader will get a in detail information of the Indian judiciary system, the loopholes, the dependency on evidence and how the struggle that goes through to collect and maintain these evidence, eventually how crucial all this can be for the case.
The book is a sincere, truthful depiction of the incident and it's aftermath.
The writing is first rate and clearly demarcates the different phases in the case. A wonderful book, I thoroughly enjoyed reading.

[Vanessa · Rating 3 out of 5]

A story of a true crime that was committed in a year when I wasn't even born; my parents have vivid memories of reading articles in newspapers about the tandoor murder. When asked why they couldn't follow up on the final judgement, I found out the reason in the book- the Indian Judicial system.

Maxwell Pereira gives a detailed series of events on how the police and the court of judgement function in India narrating a gruesome murder that happened in Delhi in 1995. The tedious task of building a case against a criminal with political influence, malpractices and mishandling forensic evidence by educated experts, the power of media, incompetency and loopholes in the Indian judicial system 'The Tandoor Murder' has it all.

[Prakash Shenoy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I saw this incident on TV in 1995. The television had entered cable TV era from age old Doordarshan and a dozen or so news channels catering to viewers ever hungry for hot news. The tandoor murder fed them well. Author have complete knowledge of the incident since he was himself a top cop involved directly in the case. The book is a thorough account of that infamous murder popularized by cable TV news era. The real story is quite small and straight forward caused the author a lot of pain to convert it into a commercial book. This causes the book to be unnecessarily lengthy with unnecessary details. The details of autopsy/postmortem is very dirty to read and unnecessary for a common non technical reader, but author had to do it to fill the book.

[Rahul · Rating 5 out of 5]

A well written book on the Tandoor Murder case by Maxwell Pereira. The detailing work of the author is not only apparent in his writing style but also throughout the case starting from the day the incident happened.

The book also exposes the tactics usually adopted by the defense counsels to delay the trial when they know they don’t have winnable case for their client. The only sensible defense counsel comes into the scene during the last stage of the trial where he tried to bring out holes in the prosecution case but that too didn’t saved the culprit from sentencing. It also made me sad to know that that Sushil Sharma who committed this heinous crime and latter did everything he could to sabotage the case including from threatening witnesses to bribing the officials, was finally released from the jail.

[Swarnendu · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Tandoor Murder, a true crime vocabulary builder from ex-cop Pereira, is essentially a case study on social stigma, women in Indian society, Indian politics and it's alliance with corruption and crime, Indian judiciary and it's shortcomings and the much maligned Indian police force doing an absolutely phenomenal job amidst immense pressure from all quarters. Infuriating at times, mostly because of lack of pragmatism and common sense in the system; heartbreaking, whenever the pages turn to victim's misfortunes and along with it the infamous gender discrimination, and ultimately the sinking feeling of 'justice delayed is justice denied'.

Well worth a read.

[Surbhi jain · Rating 4 out of 5]

"The Tandoor Murder" is a gripping true crime story that dives into one of the most shocking murders in Indian history. The book unravels the chilling details of the crime with precision and drama, shedding light on the complexities of human nature and the brutal realities behind the incident. Through vivid storytelling, it explores the emotional and psychological turmoil of those involved, making it a haunting yet compelling read. For fans of true crime, this book is an intense, eye-opening experience.

Quote: "In 'The Tandoor Murder', the truth is darker than fiction—a chilling exploration of crime, betrayal, and the devastating consequences of human passion."

[Santosh Rangapure · Rating 5 out of 5]

The shocking,horrifying, traumatized tandoor murder which outraged the capital of India Delhi is the most distressful book I ever read. It is so disturbing that how can a human being get so low with his dirty behavior. This monstrous man Sushil Sharma brutally killed his wife Naina in his home and tried to burn her death body in his own restaurant's tandoor with the help of hotel manager. Even after killing Naina with such a horrifying manner this shameless person tried to run away from judiciary and did every attempt to obliterate every evidence and every witness to escape from the punishment. His tactics to flee from judicial punishment is such a shameless act. Being in politics in India people think they have every right to do any kind of wrongdoing and with the help of political power and money power they can escape from any evil act... this is really disturbing. The loopholes in our judicial system are so deep that a common man can't even dream of getting justice in India and this is really shaking me up after reading this book. Initially Sharma was sentenced to death by the judge Thareja which susequently tuned into life imprisonment and now he is free on the grounds that any life convicts punished for a single offence are to be released after 20 years of incarceration.......This means you can simply make any kind of disgusting crime and get free with the help of judiciary loopholes......This is not at all getting digestible for my mind.

The book is well written by Mr Maxwell Pareira with every detail of the case mentioned in the book which makes it very interesting to read. Initially you think that a book written by a cop may be a boring and dry story but Mr Pareira takes you on ride with his writing skills and creates great atmosphere of politics, drama, human emotions in a single writing, I am impressed with his writing technique. The hard work by Delhi police in this critical case is commendable, with all the political, public and media pressure they just proved that if the cops work with true will they can dig any criminal with any background. I highly recommend this book to all of my friends.

[Inkpagewhisperer · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had no clue about this case until I read this one.
Quite unsure of how people get involved in such an awful act. Killing his wife and burning her in his own restaurant. Feeling guilty about it on one day and trying to manipulate the case.
This book was a great narration of all the sequence of events during this case trails.

[Aditya K · Rating 5 out of 5]

They say the devil lies in the details...
Then maxwell pereira has tamed the devil!
This book covers every point from the beginning to end regarding the investigation and trial.
A Wonderful effort to bring forth the intricacies and intrigues of this case!

[Mohit Sharma · Rating 4 out of 5]

A true tale of Indian Judiciary

This book contains all details of the well known Tandoor Murder. It made me realize how cunning criminals and their lawyers can act to play around Indian Judiciary system.

[Parul Anil · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nice read..

A nice well written book on the tandoor murder case.the culprit should have been hung for the crime committed but in our country criminals are given relaxations.his deed lead to end of a life who had ambitions in life to fulfil ..

[Sanjeev Chhabra · Rating 4 out of 5]

A must read to understand the Indian Judiciary system from a Policeman's perspective. The way the Police won a conviction despite every possible attempt of delay and obstruction of justice, deserves a special award. The book also shows how easy it is to change the course of justice in India.

[Jawahar Surti · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5/5 This book surely throws light on our justice system. The cases drag on for years. The impact of punishment loses its aim to deter others to perpetrate a crime.

[Vagisha · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well written but fanciful. Really it’s more like how police should function rather than how it really does. Worth a read though. Chilling.

[Aditya · Rating 5 out of 5]

In

[Madhav Thapar · Rating 3 out of 5]

Factual but dry and a bit too documentary for my taste ,which makes it a slow read unfortunately.

[Sanjay Khetwal · Rating 4 out of 5]

It is quite a good read.