Sirmaur police crack mystery of half-burnt body

The Himachal Pradesh Police, along with their Haryana counterparts, solved the mystery surrounding the recovery of a half-burnt woman’s body from a forest near Dhaula Kuan, leading to the arrest of the accused.

Yesterday, the half-burnt body was found in a forest area under the Paonta Sahib police subdivision of Sirmaur district in Himachal Pradesh, triggering panic in the region. The police said an attempt was made to burn the body to destroy evidence and conceal the identity of the deceased.

The deceased has been identified as Amanpreet Kaur, a resident of Barara in Ambala. Sources said the breakthrough came after the Haryana Police contacted Sirmaur police personnel regarding the movement of a suspect whose location had been traced to the Paonta Sahib area.

Acting swiftly, the Sirmaur police nabbed Sandeep Kumar, a resident of Janakpuri in Barara, near Bata Bridge late on Wednesday evening. Investigators said CCTV footage from Ambala and Sirmaur played a crucial role in tracing the accused. The footage reportedly showed the suspect carrying a sack on a rickshaw in Barara, which later helped investigators establish links in the case.

Sources said a kidnapping case involving the woman had earlier been registered against the accused at the Barara police station in Haryana. Sources added that the investigators were probing multiple angles, including the relationship between the accused and the deceased and the circumstances leading to her death.

Sirmaur Superintendent of Police Nishchint Singh Negi said the accused had been arrested on basis of inputs shared by the Haryana Police. “No person involved in criminal activities can remain untraceable in Sirmaur district. The police are committed to maintaining zero tolerance against crime,” the SP said.