A shocking case from Karnataka's Mandya district has brought severe flaws in police investigation and the justice system to light, as a woman who was believed to have been dead for seven years has been found alive and well. In a remarkable turn of events, the innocent man who spent more than two years behind bars after being wrongfully accused of her murder ultimately tracked her down himself. Following this major revelation, authorities have ordered a formal inquiry into the faulty investigation and the role played by the retired investigating officer who handled the case.
The Disappearance and Initial Investigation
The sequence of events began on July 3, 2019, when Manju, a resident of the Pandavapura area in Mandya, left her father's home after her family forced her into an arranged marriage against her will. Before leaving to join her lover, she stopped at a bus stand and asked a man named Rajesh, a resident of Ragimuddanahalli, to lend her a mobile phone so she could make an urgent call home. When Manju failed to return, her father Nagaraju lodged a missing person complaint with the local police station. Authorities traced the last outgoing call from Manju's phone to Rajesh's mobile number, but the case was eventually closed as untraced in 2021.
The False Murder Charges and Arrest
Months after the case was closed, Nagaraju filed a fresh complaint on August 11, 2021, based on claims made by two individuals named Anantapadmanabha and Gurukumar. They alleged that Rajesh had abducted and murdered Manju in 2019 before throwing her body into the Cauvery River. Acting on these claims, the police registered a murder case. The then investigating officer, Inspector Prabhakar, who has since retired, arrested Rajesh, inspected an alleged crime scene, and filed a chargesheet relying on witness statements and an alleged confession, despite never recovering any body. Rajesh spent roughly two to two and a half years in judicial custody before securing bail with the help of his father and legal counsel.
Tracking Down the Missing Woman After Bail
Even after being released on bail, Rajesh maintained his innocence and his legal team conducted their own private investigation, eventually locating Manju near the Nagamangala area in Mandya, where she was living with her husband. Rajesh's lawyer informed the authorities, leading to a case being registered at the Bindiganavile police station and Manju being placed in a women's counseling and shelter center. In her initial statement, Manju completely exonerated Rajesh, stating she had no idea that a murder case had been filed over her disappearance. She told the police that she did not even know who Rajesh was or why her father had filed such a case, adding that she was ready to testify anywhere that he was completely innocent.
Action Demanded Against Erring Officials
Rajesh's family has demanded strict legal action against Nagaraju for filing a false complaint, as well as against retired Inspector Prabhakar for fabricating evidence and ruining Rajesh's life. Speaking to the media, Mandya Superintendent of Police (SP) Shobha Rani acknowledged the grave lapse in the case. While she did not immediately comment on how a chargesheet was filed without recovering a body, she stated that she has instructed a Deputy Superintendent of Police (DySP) to conduct a thorough probe into the flawed investigation and submit a detailed report.
