A clothing tag helps Bengaluru police identify a woman’s decomposed body

Police suspect that the woman was murdered during a domestic dispute. | Photo Credit: Illustration by Satheesh Vellinezhi

Bengaluru police have arrested a 32-year-old man in connection with the alleged murder of his wife, whose highly decomposed body was found on September 2 in a vacant lot at Agrahara Layout in northeast Bengaluru’s MS Nagar.

The accused, identified as Sagar Chandra Rawat, allegedly killed his wife Anusuya Behara (28) after an argument over financial matters at their rented house near Sampigehalli on August 11. According to the police, he strangled Anusuya during the argument.

The defendants allegedly kept the body in their home for three days as they tried to figure out how to dispose of it. On August 16, around three in the morning, he allegedly wrapped the body in a bed and dumped it in a vacant lot near his house. He chose the site after noticing the vegetation that grew thickly there. He subsequently vacated the house and began living in the hotel where he worked, police said.

The case came to light on September 2 amid a campaign by the Greater Bengaluru Authority to clear vacant lots. A decomposing body was found by workers clearing vegetation at site no. 294 in Agrahara Layout. The owner of the place immediately alerted the police, who arrived at the place around 7 p.m. The body was wrapped in a bed and tied with rope.

Preliminary investigation indicated that someone murdered the woman about a month ago and dumped her body at the site.

“Identification of the deceased was difficult as the body had been decomposing for almost a month. Special teams were formed and searches were conducted in nearby lodging facilities and paying hotels to establish the identity of the woman, but no traces were found,” the case investigator said.

The police took photographs of the deceased’s clothes, a pendant around her neck and bracelets on her hands. The breakthrough came when investigators found a tag on the deceased woman’s clothing. Police traced the tag to a shopping complex in Bhubaneswar.

By scanning the label and gathering details of where the garment was sold, the police identified the woman and arrested Rawat. The couple got married a few months ago. and came to Bengaluru to earn a living.

The woman’s family identified the dead. However, the police will conduct a DNA test to confirm her identity.

Sampigehalli police filed an FIR under Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita Section 103(1).

Published – 25 Sep 2026 13:37 IST