The Ambala police have arrested a man for allegedly killing a young woman and burning her body in a forest in Himachal Pradesh.
The accused has been identified as Sandeep Kumar alias Appu, in his 40s, and the deceased as Amandeep Kaur, in her 30s. Both were residents of Barara. The accused ran a solar panel and inverter battery shop in Barara, while Amandeep worked as a tutor.
The half-burnt body of the deceased was recovered from a forest near Dhaula Kuan in Sirmaur district. The two were reportedly in a relationship for nearly six years, but the accused was already married and had children. The accused had allegedly told the deceased that they would commit suicide together. While the woman was given poison, he did not consume it. He was produced before a court, which sent him to four-day police remand.
On May 13, a missing person complaint was registered at the Barara police station after Jaspal Singh stated that his niece had gone missing. CCTV footage showed the accused transporting a heavy bag containing Amandeep’s body. The accused had allegedly poisoned her, and after she died, stuffed the body into a large bag. With the help of a modified cart owner, he loaded the bag onto the cart and later into his car. He then took the body to Himachal Pradesh and burned it.
The person who helped Sandeep Kumar was detained by the police. He claimed that Sandeep had asked him to help transport the bag and gave him Rs 100. The accused had told him that he had a battery business and the bag was too heavy for him.
DSP Barara Suresh Kaushik said, “On Tuesday evening, the woman had gone to the rented accommodation of the accused near the railway underpass, where she was given a cold drink laced with poison. The next day, he stuffed the body into a bag and took it to Himachal Pradesh, where he burned it using petrol to destroy evidence. During the investigation, after checking CCTV footage and gathering information from toll plazas, the accused was detained last night in Sirmaur.”
“We had shared the information with the Himachal Pradesh Police. The accused was arrested and the partially burnt body was recovered. During preliminary questioning, the accused claimed that he also intended to consume poison to commit suicide, but after the woman died, he did not take it. The exact reason behind the murder will be clear during further investigation. They had been in touch for the past six years. Murder charges will be added to the FIR registered earlier,” he added.
The DSP further said that the person who helped load the body was intoxicated when detained. He claimed the accused told him the bag contained batteries and other items, and paid him Rs 100 to help. The cremation was conducted in Barara on Thursday evening. During the remand, police will ascertain the motive for the murder, the source of the poison, and the involvement of any other persons in the case.
