Who is Charles Sobhraj’s wife? Meet The Real Serpent’s Much Younger Husband, Nihita Biswas, Who Married Him in Prison
She is a loyal wife who describes her husband as ‘a good man’, but the circumstances surrounding Nihita Biswas’ marriage to Charles Sobhraj couldn’t be more bizarre.
Sobhraj, now 79, preyed on Western tourists on South Asia’s hippie trail in the 1970s and lured them to their deaths – with his “serpent-like ability” to seduce while evading detection by authorities, earning him the nickname The Serpent yielded.
His crimes are explored in the final episode of three-part drama The Real Serpent: Investigating a Serial Killer, airing on Channel 4 tonight at 9pm.
It is believed he killed at least backpackers in India, Thailand and Nepal. He was initially sentenced to a total of 29 years in prison for two murders. He spent ten years in a New Delhi prison before escaping.
The serial killer was later imprisoned in Nepal for another 19 years and during this sentence he met his lawyer’s daughter, Nihita, and fell in love at first sight, despite an age difference of more than 40 years.
Here, Femail reveals the age-gap couple’s relationship history and why Nihita has remained by The Serpent’s side despite his heinous crimes.
Charles Sobhraj (R) and wife Nihita Biswas (L) are led to a waiting vehicle by Nepalese police officers after a court hearing in Kathmandu on May 31, 2011
Charles Sobhraj, 79, spent ten years in a New Delhi prison after being convicted of a series of murders, before later being jailed in Nepal for 19 years
While serving his sentence in Nepal, Sobhraj was introduced to his lawyer’s daughter, Nihita Biswas (pictured), and the pair are said to have subsequently married (Photo: EPA)
Who is Nihita Biswas?
Nihita, in her mid-30s, was born in Nepal in 1988, the son of a businessman of Bangladeshi descent and Shakuntala Thapa, a Nepalese lawyer and human rights activist.
Nihita was educated at St Mary’s High School in Kathmandu and obtained her law degree from Tribhuvan University, Kirtipur, Nepal, according to DNA India.
She later made headlines in 2011 after becoming the first Nepalese citizen to participate in season five of India’s equivalent of Big Brother, Big Boss.
However, she was only able to survive for a week and was the first participant to be evicted, as reported by India today.
Nihita Biswas, 35, was born in Nepal in 1988 to a businessman of Bangladeshi descent and Shakuntala Thapa, a Nepalese lawyer and human rights activist (Photo: Shutterstock)
How did Charles Sobhraj and Nihita Biswas meet?
Nihita’s mother, Shakuntala Thapa, represented Sobhaj during his trial at the Supreme Court of Nepal, but she failed to obtain her client’s release.
Sobhraj was sentenced to life (minimum 20 years) in 2003 for the murder of two Americans and was held in a maximum security prison in Kathmandu.
Nihita, who has a good command of the French language, was brought in as an interpreter for Sobhraj’s visiting French lawyer, which is how she and Sobhraj initially met.
After quickly building a relationship, The Serpent married his second wife Nihita in Kathmandu Prison on October 9, 2008.
Sobhraj was 66 at the time and Nihita was reportedly in his early twenties.
Although her mother and Sobhaj’s lawyer had left Nepal by the time Nihita met Sobhraj for the first time, it is said that afterward she made such an impression on him that he would make excuses to see her again.
Nihita told Times of India: ‘He acted as if he had another assignment for me. He gave me a huge shopping list. It was mostly canned stuff.”
Speaking about her decision to be in a relationship with a convicted serial killer, Nihita emphasized that she believes he has always been innocent.
She said, ‘I don’t know what he was. What he is now is important. He is a good man, I have seen how he takes care of his family. We have a good relationship.’
“He’s innocent,” Nihita added. “There’s no evidence against him.”
On his part, Charles Sobhraj said in a 2008 interview that it was love at first sight for both of them. Times of India.
It is currently unknown whether Biswas (L) would join her husband Sobhraj (R) in France after he was released from prison in December 2022 (Photo: Getty Images)
Are Charles Sobhraj and Nihita Biswas still married?
The killer was first seen publicly with Biswas in 2017, after he was taken from his cell to hospital in Kathmandu for life-saving coronary surgery with the help of his wife.
In December 2002, Sobhraj was flown to France from Nepal from Kathmandu after serving 19 years of his 20-year life sentence.
Biswas was photographed on the phone on the day of his release walking outside immigration as Sobhraj was brought in, but her whereabouts when her husband boarded the plane were unknown.
Sobhraj, who was released from prison early due to his battle with heart disease, is now expected to undergo medical treatment in France, which may include open heart surgery.
A source close to Sobhraj in Nepal said: “His wife has said he may need another operation and will be closely monitored by doctors after landing.”
According to Times of IndiaSobhraj and his wife planned to consummate their wedding after his release, and the couple plans to write a book about how they “found love in the most daunting of circumstances.”