Senior geologist found brutally murdered in the city

NT Correspondent

Bengaluru: A senior geologist at the Mines and Geology Department was found brutally stabbed to death at her flat in Gokula Apartment in Subramanyapura here.

The jurisdictional police identified the deceased as 45-year-old Pratima KS. Further the police said that she was living alone in a rented flat in Doddakallasandra after she separated from her husband a few years ago.

Her husband and son were living in Thirthahalli of Shivamogga district. Prima facie investigations have hinted that the woman might have been murdered by unidentified assailants after she returned from work on Saturday night.

So far it has been revealed that her car driver had dropped her to the residence around 8 pm on Saturday.

The incident came to light after Pratima's brother, Pratish, a Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) contractor came to see her on Sunday morning. In his statement to the police, he said that he had called his sister over her mobile phone three times on Saturday night.

When his calls went unanswered, he assumed she was asleep and thought of meeting her the next morning. However he found her lying dead on the floor with her throat slit on Sunday morning and alerted the police.

Subramanyapura police inspected the spot and called in officials from forensic lab, fingerprint experts and dog squads to collect evidence from the crime scene.

The body was later sent for a post-mortem analysis to KIMS hospital in the city. Deputy Commissioner of Police, South Division, Rahul Kumar Shahapurwad visited the spot.

He said that nothing was stolen from the house which indicates that the assailants must have planned the murder. The DCP expressed suspicion that the woman was first suffocated and then strangled.

"She has been living alone for more than six years and had no qualms about her work. So far it has been learnt that she had no disputes with her colleagues, relatives or friends. We have formed three teams to investigate the murder. Further information will be shared after investigation," he said.

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah reacted to the tragedy and said that he would inquire for more information on the case and added that the motive for the murder was still unknown.