DEOGARH: Police on Tuesday arrested two persons in connection with the murder of a 26-year-old woman who was stabbed and bludgeoned to death in Deogarh town on April 4. The accused were identified as Aswini Sandhu (34) of Rengali and Shyam Khadia (29) of Ainthapali in Sambalpur district. Police said the duo killed Rita Kumari Sahu, an employee of a non-banking finance corporation (NBFC), for refusing the marriage proposal of Sandhu.
Deogarh SP Pramod Rath said Kumari worked in a vehicle showroom at Lapanga in Sambalpur in 2021-22 and stayed in the house of Sandhu on rent. During this period, Sandhu developed one-sided love for Kumari. Later, the woman left the job and rented a house on the pretext of her mother’s illness. Subsequently, she joined the NBFC as an office assistant at Khetrajpur. In 2023, she was transferred to Deogarh.
During Kumari’s stay in Sambalpur, Sandhu spent around `10 lakh on her by giving different gifts including a mobile phone, gold ornament and also financial assistance to her elder sister. On March 31, Sandhu talked to Kumari and her sister via conference call. During the conversation, Kumari bluntly refused his marriage proposal. Enraged by the rejection, Sandhu decided to eliminate her.
Sandhu sought the help of Khadia to execute the murder. On April 4, the duo arrived at Deogarh and went to Kumari’s office in an inebriated state. When the woman came outside the office, Sandhu reportedly requested her not to reject his marriage proposal. All of a sudden, Khadia started to stab Kumari multiple times. When she fell down, he smashed her head with a brick, said Rath. Police sources said Khadia has 19 criminal cases pending against him in Ainthapali and Khetrajpur police stations.