Sundargarh: The Kurla Railway Police recovered the body of a woman from Odisha’s Sundargarh district in Mumbai on Sunday last. The deceased has been identified as Pratima Kerketa, a resident of Lephripada police station area in Sundargarh district.
The Kurla police arrested one Oscar Manoj Barla from Thane railway station in connection with the crime. The accused has been taken on remand for three days and is currently being interrogated by the police. The accused Manoj hails from Sahabdera village under Talasara police limits in Sundargarh.
According to reports, Pratima’s body was packed inside a suitcase found dumped on Santacruz Road in Chembur on the way to the Kurla railway station.
Following the recovery of the body, Kurla GRP conducted an investigation and arrested Oscar Manoj Barla, who was in a live-in relationship with the deceased. The two lived in a rented house in Mumbai and Pratima worked as a domestic help in the locality.
However, Manoj suspected that Pratima was cheating on him and having an affair with another man. On Saturday night, the couple had an ugly fight over the issue and the argument soon took an ugly turn when Manoj killed Pratima in a fit of rage. Later, he mutilated her body, stuffed it in a suitcase, and dumped it beside a road.
Some members of the victim’s family left for Mumbai after the police informed them about the incident.