Woman’s semi-naked body found, murder after rape suspected

LUCKNOW: The partially nude body of a 25-year-old woman was found on the outskirts in Nigoha village here on Thursday afternoon. Police suspected that the woman was murdered somewhere else, allegedly after being raped, and her body was disposed of on the deserted stretch to conceal the crime.

The body was recovered hidden in bushes near Sudauli turn alongside Lucknow-Rae Bareli highway.

A local, Akhilesh Kumar said the spot where the body was recovered was around 50 metres inside from the highway and covered with dense bushes.

He said that it seemed the body was intentionally hidden there so that nobody could spot it. The body was spotted when foul smell started emanatingand stray dogs gathered around it, he added.

He said the body was semi-naked and bore multiple injuries. He said the victim had short hair and was wearing a rust colour kurta.

Station officer (SO) of Nigoha police station, Champion Lal said the body was badly decomposed and seemed to be a week old. He said the spot examination suggested that she was murdered somewhere else and the body was disposed of here to conceal the crime.

The SO added that the wheel marks of a vehicle were found near the spot that hinted that a four-wheeler was used to dispose the body.

He said the police team tried to ascertain the victim’s identity but nobody recognised her as the body’s face was badly damaged.

However, the locals suspected that the body could be of a mentally retarded girl, who was spotted loitering around in the area few days ago, said the SO.

He added that the body was sent for post-mortem examination and efforts were on to identify the victim.

He said the post-mortem with a panel of doctors was requested so that exact cause of death could be ascertained.

Moreover, the doctors were asked to confirm if the victim was sexually assaulted, he added.