Pinjore, August 24: The body of a 25-year-old man from Chandigarh who went missing earlier this month was recovered Saturday, buried nearly 30 feet deep near the Pinjore bypass. Police suspect it to be a case of murder.
Pinjore SHO Inspector Bachchu Singh said the operation to exhume the body lasted more than five hours, from 10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. “The body was covered by a thick layer of soil due to rain and soil displacement, and heavy machinery had to be used for excavation,” Singh noted. Forensic experts were also called to the site to collect samples.
The deceased was identified as Rajiv Gupta of Bapu Dham Colony, Sector 26, Chandigarh. According to police, Gupta had been reported missing by his father, Ramu Gupta, on August 18 at the IT Park police station. In his complaint, Ramu said his son had last visited him in Manimajra on August 9 during the Rakhi festival and had not returned home since.
Officials said two suspects were taken into custody during the investigation and later disclosed the location of the burial site to police. The badly decomposed body was shifted to the mortuary at Civil Hospital, Sector 6, for post-mortem examination.
While police confirmed foul play, the motive behind the killing has yet to be determined. Singh said the process of registering an FIR was still underway late Saturday evening.
