The remains of news anchor Salma Sultana, who disappeared in 2018, have been uncovered during an excavation on the Korba-Dari highway, Chhattisgarh.
The excavation was prompted by information from her boyfriend, Madhur Sahu, who has been apprehended on suspicion of her murder.
The skeleton was found wrapped in a bedsheet along with slippers, and hair samples were also discovered. DNA testing is underway. The investigation involved advanced techniques such as satellite imagery, thermal imaging, and ground penetration radar to protect the newly-built Rs 42 crore highway.
Three individuals, including Sahu, have been arrested in connection with the crime that took place five years ago. Sultana’s disappearance was linked to her relationship with Sahu, her gym trainer. Her body was buried along the Korba-Darri Four-lane road.
Salma Sultana, an eighteen-year-old renowned for her news reporting, stage shows, and other programs, hailed from Kusmunda, a suburban area of Korba. On October 21, 2018, she traveled to Korba from Kusmunda for work but failed to return home. Despite her family’s exhaustive efforts, no leads surfaced, and the search persisted for days following the filing of a missing person’s report.
Additional information reached the police regarding inappropriate behavior and threats linked to a youth who was asked to repay a loan. Amid the inquiry, details emerged that Salma had been murdered half a decade ago, with her remains buried along the Korba-Darri road.
On May 30, a potential burial site for Salma was pinpointed, prompting the deployment of a JCB machine for retrieval. Unfortunately, the search yielded no results. Over the span of five years, the Korba-Darri road underwent a transformation, evolving from a single road into a four-lane concrete highway.
Ongoing investigations continue to delve into the intricacies of the case.
