A 55-year-old man has allegedly bludgeoned his wife to death over suspicion of her having extramarital affairs in Noida, officials said on Saturday. According to the police, the accused, Nurullah Haider, hit his wife, Asma Khan, on her head with a hammer during an argument, resulting in her death.

The incident took place in Noida’s Sector 15 area on Friday.

The 42-year-old victim was a software engineer and worked at a private company in Noida’s Sector 62. She lived in Delhi earlier and was an engineering graduate from Jamia Millia Islamia University. The accused is from Bihar and was also an engineering graduate. However, he is currently unemployed.

The couple married in 2005 and have two children – a son and a daughter. While their son is an engineering student, their daughter studies in Class 8.

Officials said that the couple’s son first reported the incident to the police by dialing 112 – an emergency response number in India.

“As soon as we received the information, our team and forensic experts reached the spot. We have taken the accused into custody and sent the victim’s body for post-mortem. Further investigation is underway,” Deputy Commissioner of Police Rambadan Singh said.

Preliminary investigation revealed that Haider had been suspecting his wife of having extramarital affairs.

“Their daughter informed me about the incident this morning. They were fighting for several days. But we did not expect that he would take such a step,” the victim’s brother-in-law said.