Narayanpatna: A pregnant woman was murdered allegedly by her husband in Kutudi village of Tentulipadar panchayat of Narayanpatna block in Koraput district.
Though the woman was murdered around five days back, the grisly case came to light only Tuesday as the couple lived in a secluded area.
The woman, identified as Kote Jani, was in the eighth month of her pregnancy, according to sources. The body was still lying in the shanty at the time of filing this report.
Kote’s family lodged a complaint against her husband Shiva Huika at Narayanpatna police station Tuesday. Shiva has been absconding ever since the incident, police said.
According to police, Kote, daughter of Lachha Jani of Damanjodi area, married Shiva two years back after a courtship. The couple lived in a dingy hut near a hill, around 500 m from Kutudi village. They eked out a living by selling minor forest produce. Villagers said they were shocked to know of the woman’s murder as the couple seemed to be quite happy. Shiva was reportedly pleased with his wife’s pregnancy. Sources said Kote’s family was also planning to shift the couple to Damanjodi to ensure a proper upbringing of the child.
In an unexpected turn of events, Kote was found murdered with her husband absconding. The villagers said they had no inkling of the incident while the woman’s family said they came to know of the incident from villagers. A complaint was lodged with Damanjodi police. Failing to nab the accused, the police brought other family members to the police station for interrogation. Police couldn’t reach the murder scene as it is located in a Maoist-infested area, the investigating officer said. Efforts are on bring the body for a post-mortem, the officer added.
A domestic feud might have led to the killing, a preliminary investigation revealed. The accused would be nabbed very soon, inspector in-charge Suraj Kumar Jhankar said. PNN