Giridih – Widespread protests broke out in Jharkhand’s Giridih district after the bodies of two missing women were recovered from the Golgo Pahari forest late Monday evening, officials confirmed on Tuesday.
Police have arrested Shrikant Chaudhary of Kharsan village for the alleged murders of Soni Devi (23) and Rinku Devi (31), both residents of Neemadhi village. Preliminary investigations indicate the women were strangled to death. Their bodies have been sent for post-mortem.
According to police, Soni Devi, though married, was in a relationship with Chaudhary, which had previously sparked a village dispute. A panchayat had fined him Rs 1.7 lakh and declared the relationship “illegal,” yet the affair continued.
Last week, Soni went to the forest with neighbour Rinku to collect leaves and both went missing. Soni’s mother later filed a missing persons report, suspecting Chaudhary’s role. Phone records linked him to the case, and during interrogation he confessed, leading police to the bodies.
On Tuesday, hundreds of angry villagers staged a protest outside Gawan police station, alleging negligence and even bribery by police officials. They demanded that Chaudhary be handed over to them. Additional forces have been deployed to maintain order.
With inputs from IANS