PALAKKAD: Body parts believed to be those of a woman and a girl were found stuffed in three sacks in Bhavani river at Attappadi in Palakkad district on Sunday afternoon, prompting the Pudur police to register a murder case and launch an investigation.
The sacks, found floating in the river near Cheerakkadavu about 9km away from Agali, were spotted by people who had gone to graze cattle around 2.30 pm. A strong stench from the sacks raised a suspicion, following which they alerted the police.
“Police personnel who reached the spot — near the Thavalam-Mulli stretch— found the body parts of the girl in the first sack. The second sack contained the severed head portions of two deceased, while a third sack containing body parts believed to be those of the woman was found about 1km downstream,” said a senior officer with the Pudur station.
The woman is assumed to be aged over 30, while the age of the girl is yet to be ascertained. Police said the remains appear to be at least five days old and were in an advanced stage of decomposition, making identification difficult.
“The bodies do not bear any obvious identifying clues. There are no distinctive clothes or ornaments, and the advanced decomposition has made identification difficult. No missing-person cases have been reported at the nearby police stations so far. A dog squad and forensic experts, besides senior police officers, reached the spot and are assisting the investigation,” Santhosh CR, additional SP, Palakkad, told TNIE.
“From the preliminary examination, it is almost certain that the deceased are not members of the tribal communities in the area,” he said.
Cops examining missing-person reports
“We have also started checking whether any migrant workers in the region have been reported missing,” the officer added.
Based on the statement of a witness, the police registered a murder case under section 103(1) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. A search of the surrounding area was conducted, but no additional sacks or human remains were found, police said.
The remains have been shifted to the Thrissur Government Medical College Hospital and the postmortem examination will be conducted on Monday.
Police are examining missing-person reports from neighbouring districts of Kerala and Tamil Nadu to ascertain the identities of the deceased. CCTV footage from the area is also being examined to establish how the sacks reached the river and identify those responsible.
