Mystery shrouds the death of a stenographer

NT Correspondent

Bengaluru: In a shocking incident, the body of a 50-yearold woman who was working as a stenographer at the Karnataka Forest Department in the city was found on the railway tracks near Hirehalli in Tumakuru.

The police identified the deceased as Annapurna, an employee at Aranya Bhavan in Malleswaram, who used to reside in Bengaluru along with her son.

According to sources, a complaint had been filed at the Yeshwanthpur Police Station in Bengaluru after the woman went missing on Tuesday.

It is learnt that Annapurna had been to Shivamogga for some work following which she took a train around 12:15 am to reach Bengaluru.

Her brother, Brahmanand, accompanied her on her return journey from Shivamogga.

However, according to sources, Annapurna was travelling in a women's general compartment while her brother boarded a reservation coach. Upon reaching the Bengaluru railway station around 5 am, Brahmananda waited for his sister.

Unable to find her, he repeatedly called her phone but the calls went unanswered. Concerned about her disappearance, Brahmananda later approached the railway police.

An intensified search began as the police started scanning the CCTV installed at all the railway stations between Shivamogga and Bengaluru to make sure if Annapurna had got down at any of the platforms.

Meanwhile, a personnel received information of a woman's body found on the railway tracks near Hirehalli.

A photo of the body was shown to Brahmananda who was shocked to identify the deceased woman as Annapurna.

The police suspect that the woman was murdered as according to the family, Annapurna did not have any dispute with anyone.

She was said to be of a sound mind and content with her life. One of the investigative officers said that there were several injuries on the neck and head of the woman.

Ornaments including her ear rings and chain were missing from her body. However, her mobile phone was found lying a few meters away from her body and was intact.

It had 20 missed calls, the police said. The police also said that Annapurna's luggage bag was found almost 20 kilometers away from her body. Further probe is underway to uncover the mystery behind the death of the woman.