(Solan) Himachal Pradesh, Kumud Sharma, January 26:

A man who had gone hunting in Himachal Pradesh’s Solan district was killed by two hunters who beheaded him and then burnt and buried his head and torso separately. The killers have been arrested, police said. The deceased has been identified as Somdutt alias Sonu, 38, a resident of Palhech village in Pachhad in Sirmaur district. Bhutto Ram, 41, and Sandeep, 39, both residents of Sultanpur in Solan, were arrested on Saturday in connection with the incident. Police said the duo burnt Somdutt’s severed head and buried it in the forest in Sultanpur and hid his torso in the Vansi forest in Sirmaur district. The forest is adjacent to the district’s border. Police said the incident took place on Tuesday. They have recovered parts of Somdutt’s body, which have been sent for post-mortem. DNA samples have been taken to ascertain the identity of the deceased. A case of murder has been registered at Sadar police station in Solan. According to the police, Somdutt had gone to visit his ailing sister in Narang, Solan on January 18.

Somdutt’s brother-in-law Yashpal Kumar told the police that his relative had gone to the forest on Tuesday to fetch wood. Yashpal also told the police that Somdutt had borrowed a rifle from one of the neighbours for hunting. Later in the evening, Yashpal’s daughter received a call from Somdutt that he would return late at night, but he did not return. On Thursday, Yashpal Kumar lodged a complaint at Sadar police station, expressing apprehension that his relative has been murdered,” a police source told The Indian Express.

After receiving a complaint from Yashpal, a search was launched. The victim’s mobile phone was switched off. During investigation and analysis of call detail records (CDRs) and dump data of active mobiles, we found that Bhutto Ram and Sandeep were roaming around the area where the victim was last seen. We questioned them and both of them confessed to their crime.

They told the police that they had also gone to the forest for hunting. Sandeep fired and the bullet hit Somdutt, who was on the other side. We have seized the 12-bore rifle used in the crime. The weapon is licensed and issued in Sandeep’s name,” Assistant Superintendent of Police Raj Kumar told Diary Times.

ASP Raj Kumar said Somdutt also had a 12-bore rifle and he and the two suspects did not know each other and had gone hunting separately.

“It is being investigated whether his rifle was licensed or obtained illegally,” he said.

Bhutto Ram and Sandeep were sent to five-day police custody on Saturday.

During the investigation, the police analysed the mobile phone locations of the accused on January 21 and found that they had gone hunting in the Sumati forest near Solan after parking their vehicles on the roadside. At the same time, Somdutt had also gone hunting in the same forest.

According to the police, Sandeep accidentally fired from his gun and the bullet hit Somdutt’s head, killing him instantly. In panic, the two decided to dispose of the body. They put Somdutt’s body in a plastic bag and took it to a cave in the Vasni forest of Sirmaur district. Before going to the cave, the accused left their mobile phones in one of their vehicles to avoid police attention. At the cave, the accused allegedly used a sickle (a larger form of sickle) to behead the victim. They burnt his torso in the cave and took the head to the forest in Sultanpur and buried it in the ground after burning it. Apart from hiding the gun, the accused also allegedly broke Somdutt’s mobile phone and disposed it off. Two police teams identified the places where the victim’s torso and head were hidden. They were inspected with the help of a forensic team from Junga.

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