Woman’s Body Dug Up From 10-Foot Pit Months After In-Laws Who Said She Ran Away

The decomposed body of a 24-year-old woman, who her in-laws claimed had run away two months ago, was exhumed from a 10-foot-deep pit in front of their house in Faridabad on Friday in a case of suspected dowry murder. The victim’s husband and father-in-law have been arrested, with the latter reportedly confessing to the crime.

The victim, Tanu Kumar, a native of Uttar Pradesh’s Firozabad, was married to Arun Singh two years ago. Her body was recovered using a JCB excavator after her family persistently raised alarms about foul play. Four members of her marital family, including her husband Arun, father-in-law Bhoop Singh, mother-in-law, and sister-in-law, have been booked by the police.

The gruesome discovery brought an end to a two-month-long deception. According to police, in late April, the in-laws first dug the pit, telling neighbours it was for a new sewer line. Days later, they reported Tanu missing, telling authorities and her family that she was “mentally challenged” and had run away.

However, Tanu’s family alleged that she was a victim of constant harassment and torture over dowry demands ever since her marriage. Her father, Hakim, stated that the abuse was so severe that Tanu had spent the first year of her marriage back at her maternal home and had only returned to her in-laws’ house in Faridabad after a panchayat meeting was convened to settle the matter.

The family also accused the local police of inaction. Hakim alleged that when he visited his daughter’s marital home after being told she had “run away,” he immediately grew suspicious upon seeing the freshly dug and covered pit in the lane outside. He claimed that despite repeated visits to the local police station to report his suspicions, no action was taken until a week ago.

“A complaint was filed on the matter a week ago, and based on it, the body was recovered from the pit,” Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Central, Usha Kundu, confirmed on Friday. Following the recovery, the father-in-law, Bhoop Singh, reportedly confessed during interrogation to strangling Tanu on the night of April 21-22 and then burying her body in the pit.

The body has been sent for a post-mortem to determine the exact cause of death, and the police are continuing their investigation.