Bargarh police exhume skeletal remains amid murder allegations

Police in the Bargarh district of Odisha have exhumed the skeletal remains of 52-year-old Amrut Barge nearly a month after his death following allegations of murder. The remains were recovered from agricultural land in Pandakipali village under the jurisdiction of the Sohela police.

The investigation follows a complaint lodged by Barge’s wife, who alleged that a villager, Rajani Sahu, had manipulated her into silence. According to the victim's family, Sahu took Barge to work in a field on September 8, after which Barge was reported unconscious and subsequently declared dead at a community health centre. The wife claimed that Sahu threatened her with dire consequences if she disclosed the circumstances of the death, leading the family to bury him on their land.

Acting on the formal complaint, Sohela police and a scientific team exhumed the remains in the presence of an executive magistrate. The skeletal remains have been transported to the Veer Surendra Sai Institute of Medical Sciences and Research (VIMSAR) in Burla for a post-mortem examination. Bargarh Superintendent of Police Rabindranath Satpathy stated that the exact cause of death and the validity of the murder allegations will be determined once the medical examination report is received.