A guard carries a woman’s body a kilometer after retrieving it from the river

In a show of humanity, a constable of the Mantralayam police carried the dead body of a woman who allegedly ended her life in the Tungabhadra river, almost a kilometer through the hilly terrain. The guard is said to have carried the body on his back because there was no one to help and because it could not be left in the waters until help arrived.

The deceased Jayashree (41) hailed from Balapalle village in Chamarajanagar district of neighboring Karnataka. She, along with her family members, reportedly came to Mantralayam to offer prayers at the Sri Raghavendra Swamy Mutt. After the darshan, the other family members left for their native place around 8:00 AM on Sunday, while Jayashree stayed back.

Mantralayam Circle Inspector (CI) Madhusudhan Rao said that in the afternoon Jayashree called and informed her family members that she was going to take an extreme step and they sought help from the police to trace her.

“As soon as we received the information, we sent teams to search for the woman and alerted Constable G. Ranga Swamy, who is handling protocol duties at Sri Raghavendra Swamy Mutt. He rushed towards the banks of the Tungabhadra river,” Mr. Madhusudhan Rao told The Hindu. Meanwhile, the family has sent Jayashree’s photo for identification.

With a photo in his mobile phone, the policeman from 2009 rushed to the river. “I ran towards the river and after going through the boulders and muddy terrain, found the body of the woman floating in the waters, exactly 17 minutes after the search was started,” Mr. Ranga Swamy told The Hindu.

Apart from Mr. Ranga Swamy, one more constable and a local fisherman were near the spot. “We brought the woman to shore and even tried CPR to pump out the water she had swallowed, but it was too late,” the officer said. With less rainfall this season, the Tungabhadra river did not receive much inflow and the place where it was found was not very shallow, he added.

An ambulance was called to move the body, but it was not immediately available at the time. “It was very hot and we couldn’t leave the dead body in the open because the dogs might eat it. I took the body on my back and walked towards the banks. I had to walk through boulders and mud to get to the banks and from there the body was taken to the hospital,” he said.

“I would be happy if that woman’s life was spared,” Mr Ranga Swamy said.

(Those in distress or suicidal thoughts can dial 100)

Published – 12 Oct 2026 20:34 IST