Woman ‘gangraped’; naked body found

Naveen S Garewal

Tribune News Service

Hyderabad, March 17

Months after a veterinary doctor, “Disha”, was gangraped and murdered in Shamshabad on the outskirts of Hyderabad, a naked body of an unidentified woman, aged between 25 and 30 years, with her face smashed beyond recognition was found at an isolated spot under a bridge in Chevella in Ranga Reddy district early today.

Police suspect that the women could be sexually assaulted and then her face disfigured with a boulder to evade detection. Police suspect the murder is the work of more than one person.

Besides the naked body, the police found a green saree and other clothes. The woman’s hands had been tied and she still had her jewellry on her person. The incident came to light when residents of Tangadapally village in Chevella mandal, 47 km southwest of Hyderabad, discovered the body around 7.30 am today. Locals who notice the body alerted the police who rushed to the spot and took up investigation.

Inspector Balakrishna, the Station House Officer at Chevalla said, “The body, which was found without any clothes on, was noticed by residents of Tangadipally in the early hours of Tuesday, dumped under a culvert on a road leading to Vikarabad.”

He said the assailants killed the woman after throwing a boulder on her head to disfigure the face. “Though there is likelihood, but to say it with certainty if the woman was sexually assaulted or not, we have to wait for the report of post-mortem examination.”

The police have flashed a message across the state to find out if any report of a missing person had been registered anywhere before starting with the investigation.

The horrific discovery of a woman’s naked, mutilated body under a culvert in a Hyderabad suburb has brought back chilling memories of what happened just a few months ago to Disha, a 26-year-old vet.

P Ravinder Reddy, ACP, Chevella Division, said, “We suspect that the murder may have been committed elsewhere and her body may have been dumped here later. Four teams have been formed and further investigation is under way.”

The police are checking CCTV footage in the area. Neighbouring police stations have been approached to find details about missing people.

Veterinarian Disha’s body, too, was found under a culvert; her body had been burned. Four suspects were shot dead at the crime scene by the police winning it widespread praise, but sparked a debate about the criminal justice system.