Married Karnataka woman elopes, family force-feeds poison, burns her body

BELAGAVI: In a case of alleged honour killing, a 24-year-old married woman was murdered allegedly by her family members, and her body was burnt within hours to destroy evidence in North Karnataka in mid-March.

Three of her family members, including elder brother, were arrested on charges of murder from Belagavi district on Monday, nearly a month after the gruesome incident.

Police said Satyavva, from Nadigudi village in Hukkeri taluk of Belgavi district, married Santosh Helavi of Hanabaratti village in Raibag taluk about a year ago. After marriage, she was allegedly in a relationship with a man from a different caste from the same village. In early March, she reportedly eloped with him.

The runaway couple stayed in Maharashtra's towns for nearly a fortnight before they were tracked down by the woman's family members, who termed the incident "a loss of family honour". On March 13, they allegedly took the woman to Shirol, a town in Maharashtra's Kolhapur, and tried to persuade her to return. They reportedly offered to arrange a remarriage within their caste.

When she didn't budge, the family members reportedly brought her to Arag, also in Maharashtra, where they force-fed poison to her in the night. She died within hours, police said. In an attempt to eliminate evidence, the accused immediately cremated the body at Arag. They also allegedly destroyed poison bottles and the mattress she had used to erase clues.

The incident came to light after her family filed a missing complaint at Yamakanmaradi police station in Belagavi district days later, prompting a comprehensive investigation.

While her husband belongs to the Helava tribe of genealogists who visits families every year and lyrically narrates ancestral histories, her friend is a driver.

The arrested trio have been identified as the woman's uncle Prakash Bhimappa Helavar, 46; brother Shanur Sadashiv Helavar, 35; and brother-in-law Kalappa Mayappa Helavi, 40.

Though leads were scanty and amid clinical attempts by the accused to cover up the crime, a police team, led by circle inspector Javed Mushapure, pursued several theories before approaching the victim's mother in a long-drawn probe.

Officials said inspector Mushapure gained her confidence and urged her to reveal the truth. Overcome with grief, she eventually disclosed the sequence of events, leading to a breakthrough in the case and the arrest of the accused from their village in Hukkeri taluk.


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