Karnataka: 10 days on, little headway in probe into rape-murder

“This probe cannot be compared with the Mysuru case as no mobile phones were active at the location and there are no witnesses or victims alive to share even a word of information. We are suspecting that someone who is known (to the victim) or lives in neighbouring villages might have committed the crime,” a police officer said.

Kythasandra police initially filed a murder and robbery case but later added rape charges after a postmortem. A gold chain worth Rs 30,000 that was with the victim was also missing.

The woman was a mother to two children.

“I came back from work around 5.30 pm that day and my eldest daughter came home saying that she could not find her mother in the fields. I went there and searched for her. I asked farmers and labourers… and they said they did not notice her,” the woman’s husband said.

“About 250 metres from our field, there is a rock…I found a broken glass bangle which she had worn during Varamahalakshmi pooja. Two steps ahead, I saw her body lying in a bad state. It was really devastating,” he said.

District SP Rahul Kumar Shahapurwad told The Indian Express that manys teams are on the job. “I cannot divulge information about how the investigation is progressing, but seven teams have been formed to nab the accused.”