Indore (Madhya Pradesh): Days after a woman and her four children went missing from their home in Indore, her six-month old son’s mauled body was found near Khedighat along Narmada River on Monday morning in Khandwa district.
Police said that while two of the missing children have been found, the woman and her five-year-old son are yet to be found.
According to the police, Priyanka (40), a resident of Krishna Bagh Colony, left home along with her children – Aryan (six), Priyansh (five), Himanshi (two), and Chiku (six months) – without informing anyone. Her husband Sunderlal Chaurasia lodged a missing persons complaint at Khajrana police station on December 11.
Mortakka police outpost in-charge Lakhan Dawar said that Priyanka was seen having a meal with her four children at a hotel in the Mortakka area on Sunday. Later, the five were spotted near the Mortakka Bridge over river Narmada.
By Sunday evening, passersby found Aryan and Himanshi standing alone on the same bridge and alerted the police. During questioning, the children said that their mother had told them she was going to relieve herself and had asked them to wait there. “Our mother took Cheeku and Priyansh with her. We kept standing there, but she did not return for a long time,” the children told the police.
Police trace family through Google Maps
Dawar said tracing the children’s family proved to be a challenge for the police due to their young age. Aryan remembered the name of their previous school. Police searched for the school on the web and showed its photographs to the children for identification. Using Google Maps, police then showed them images of nearby lanes, shops, and clinics to confirm the school’s location.
Aryan recognised his house near a local clinic. Police zoomed in on the clinic’s board, obtained the phone number, and contacted the doctor, asking him to connect them with Aryan’s father. After contacting the doctor, the police were able to reach the children’s father. He later arrived in Mortakka and took custody of the two children.
Infant’s body found mauled by dogs
On Monday morning, the police search for the missing children took a grim turn when an infant’s body was discovered on the banks of Khedighat along Narmada River. Police said dogs could be seen mauling the body, having eaten the child’s leg. The body was in a mutilated condition. Sunderlal identified the body as that of his six-month-old son Chiku. The body has been sent for post-mortem examination, police added.
Husband claims missing woman ‘mentally unwell
Sunderlal informed the police that his wife was mentally unwell and had left home with the children without informing the family. With one child and the woman still missing, police have intensified the search. Preliminary investigation suggests that the woman may have jumped into the river with the child. Dabar said that a search operation is underway.
