Gaya: The Gaya police on Thursday recovered the body of a woman buried in an 8-foot-deep pit near the banks of the Ganga River. The deceased has been identified as Sudha Kumari (20). Her in-laws were responsible for burying her body, and they poured a large amount of salt over it to speed up decomposition.
Dowry Dispute Led to Death
Sudha’s mother, Saroj Devi, stated that her daughter got married nine months ago to Sunil Kumar from Lav village in the Tekari police station area. Sunil works in another state. Dowry was given at the time of the wedding, but her in-laws later demanded an additional Rs 1 lakh. Sudha was often subjected to physical abuse over this demand.
Saroj Devi said, “I used to talk to my daughter daily, but on January 27, I couldn’t reach her. Fearing something was wrong, I went to her in-laws’ house. At first, they refused to tell me anything about my daughter. After persistent questioning, they claimed that Sudha had died by suicide. However, the villagers told me that my daughter had been murdered and buried.”
Body Recovered Three Days After Complaint
On January 29, a police complaint was filed. The next day, January 30, police arrested Sudha’s father-in-law and two others. During interrogation, the accused claimed that Sudha had consumed poison, and they buried her body to dispose of it.
The arrested suspects include Satyendra Prasad, Sudha’s father-in-law; Nitish Kumar, her maternal uncle-in-law from Belaganj Sripur; and Bipauli Kumar, a resident of Tekari.
According to the police, Bipauli Kumar brought a spade and salt to dispose of the body. Police are conducting raids to arrest Sudha’s husband, Sunil Kumar, and other accused.
JCB Used to Recover Body
Tekari police station in-charge Chandrashekhar said, “The body was retrieved by digging the pit using a JCB machine. It was buried at a depth of 7 to 8 feet. Three people have been arrested so far. The post-mortem report will reveal the exact cause of the woman’s death.”
