Sambalpur: A 22-year-old woman reportedly committed suicide after jumping into the Mahanadi River from a bridge in Sambalpur Wednesday.
The deceased was identified as Anju Kumbhar, a native of Talabhatapada under Khetrajpur police limits in Sambalpur Town and a resident of Mahatab Nagar in Burla.
However, the circumstances leading to her death remain unclear.
While initial reports suggested suicide, her family denied the claim and termed the incident an accident.
Her mother, Anjali Sah,u lodged a complaint at the Burla police station stating that her daughter accidentally fell off the bridge into the river.
Based on the complaint, Burla police registered a case (115/2026) of unnatural death and launched an investigation.
According to police and eyewitnesses, Anju had been staying in the Mahatab Nagar area for the past six months with a youth, Mukesh Chhatrapal of Talabhatapada, after being separated from her former husband.
The video of the incident, which occurred around 11 am, went viral, showing several passersby trying to stop the woman from jumping off the bridge along National Highway 53.
Police and Fire Services personnel reached the spot after being alerted by locals and recovered the body.
The body was sent for a postmortem.