Bhawanipatna/Balangir: The body of Mamita Meher, a schoolteacher of Sunshine English Medium School in Odisha’s Kalahandi district, was chopped into pieces and dumped into a freshly dug pit before being burnt, sources in the scientific team said.
A wooden plank was laid underneath and the body was set on fire using cardboard and tyres, the sources added.
The remains of a body suspected to be that of Mamita were exhumed from Mahaling Stadium in Kalahandi on October 19, 12 days after she went missing.
According to sources, police teams along with DIG (North range) Deepak Kumar will conduct spot verification on Thursday. Since the BJP has called for a 12-hour Balangir bandh, the reconstruction of the crime scene might be carried out on Friday.
Govind Sahu, the prime suspect who is currently in police custody, was grilled by special teams of police late into the night on Wednesday. He reportedly said he wanted assurance from Mamita that she wouldn’t disclose his illicit affair but she didn’t agree
Police may also interrogate his associate Radhe and a college clerk.
Besides Govind’s confession, police have collected 70-hrs of CCTV footage, scientific and technical evidence, the sources said.
On October 20, the DIG said that Govind had plotted to kill Mamita since she had threatened to expose his extra-marital affair. “He killed her either by smothering or strangulating inside the car while they were returning from Bhawanipatna to Kegoan. The cause of the death is being verified,” he said.
Govind, who was the president of the school management committee, took the body to the stadium on October 8 night and set it on fire. The pit was covered the following day, he said.
“The case is being closely monitored by senior officers and the charge sheet will be filed soon. The trial will be conducted by a fast track court,” he added.
The accused allegedly had asked Mamita to come to school for some official work. He had given her a lift in his car from Chandotara in Balangir district following which she was untraceable. Her family had lodged a missing complaint at Kegaon police station in Kalahandi and Turekelia police station in Balangir. Her phone, which the police are yet to trace, was also switched off.
The phone reportedly had two objectionable clips related to Govind’s extra-marital affair and was earlier believed to contain proof of involvement of a minister.
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In an audio clip that has gone viral, a colleague of Mamita was heard telling her brother that Govind was sexually harassing the female employees of the school and Mamita had threatened him over the phone to expose these illicit activties.
