Chhattisgarh Police start digging site where local news anchor was buried after being killed by her live-in partner 5 years back

In 2018, Salma Sultana was strangulated to death by her live-in partner and his two associates. All three were arrested yesterday and police have started digging the site where she was reportedly buried. Once the body is found, police will analyse the DNA samples to determine whether she is the victim.

Korba (Chhattisgarh):A local news anchor Salma Sultana was murdered by her live-in-partner and his two associates in Chhattisgarh's Korba in October 2018. Police on Monday arrested the three accused and sought permission from the court to dig up the area near Kohadiya bridge where Salma's body was reportedly buried.

A road has been constructed in the site since then. The digging process started this morning. Police are using satellite imaging to trace the body while necessary technical assistance is being provided by the PWD. Chief superintendent of police Robinson Gudiya said that an area of around 250 square meters has been marked. "Whatever remains of the body are recovered will be important in the investigations. After finding the body, the DNA samples will be collected and analysed to determine whether it is Sultana," Gudiya added.

According to the police, 25-year-old Salma Sultana, who worked for a local news channel fell in love with her gym instructor, 37-year-old Madhur Sahu, a divorcee in 2018. They started living together in a flat in Korba.

Sources said that the couple used to frequently quarrel with each other over financial matters. On October 21, 2018, Sahu strangulated Sultana to death with a stole during a fight. Police said that Sahu took help from his friend, Kaushal Shrivas (29), to kill his girl friend. Also, Sahu later called up another friend Atul Sharma (26) to help him to bury Sultana's body near Kohadiya bridge.

Meanwhile, Sultana's family approached Sahu after failing to contact their daughter. Sahu misled the family saying she had left for Mumbai in search of better career options. In January, 2019 Sultana's father died. The family became suspicious when Sultana did not attend her father's funeral. They immediately lodged a missing complaint at Kusmunda police station in Korba. The case however did not make any progress.

Over four years later while reviewing the pending cases of missing persons, Sultana's case surfaced. During investigations, it was revealed that she had taken a Rs 7 lakh bank loan and its EMI was paid by someone else. Police sought the details from bank and started a lookout for Sahu but he was untraceable. Then, police questioned people close to him and analysed Sultana's call records from 2018.

Finally, police caught hold of Atul Sharma, who confessed the crime following which, a trap was laid for Sahu and Srinivas. The two were arrested when they came to the Korba city yesterday.