Inchara Udupi
Daijiworld Media Network - Udupi

Udupi, May 8: A man from Kalaburagi who had left from here to attend a wedding and then gone missing, was found dead under suspicious circumstances at Bikriguttu near Padebettu, Padubidri here on Friday May 8.

Curiously, the body was not only highly decomposed but the head was found to be covered in plastic and there was a nylon rope around the neck. Also, some parts of the body were also found to be torn apart. 

The body, which was was found about 20 metres from a thinly populated area, had reduced to mere skeletal remains. It is suspected that wild animals must have feasted on the body and hence some parts were torn apart.

Based on the dead man's clothes and footwear, his identity was established as Raja Patel, son of Rukurma Patel, a resident of Kanameshwar in Jevargi in Kalaburagi.

The body was discovered after locals sensed foul smell emanating from the area and informed the police.

Locals suspect that Raja might have been murdered. Forensic experts were called to the spot for investigation.

Raja had been working in UPCL as a contract labourer attached to a private mechanical and labour firm for the last two years. On April 17, he took leave to attend a cousin's wedding and went to a relative's house in Lingappaiah Kadu, from where he left for his hometown. But he neither reached Jevargi nor came back to Padubidri. The same day, a complaint was filed in Padubidri police station stating that Raja Patel had gone missing.

The Padubidri police who investigated the case and tried to locate him by tracking his mobile number. Sources said that it was based on the number's location that the police suspect it to be a case of murder. Sources also said that the police had previously taken another labourer working in UPCL and staying in the same vicinity for questioning. This means that police might have suspected murder even before the body was found. Following the discovery of the body, the police have stepped up their investigation.

Meanwhile, Kaup circle inspector Sunil Nayak assured that persons involved in the incident would be arrested in the next 2-3 days and more details would be known then.

Karkala DySP Vinay Nayak, Padubidri inspector Ajmat Ali, Manipal forensic expert Dr Ashwin Kumar and other officials visited the spot and conducted investigations.