Bhubaneswar: Shocking details have emerged in the murder of woman traffic constable Subhamitra Sahoo by her husband, constable Deepak Kumar Rout.
Investigators revealed that Rout strangled Subhamitra inside his car on September 6, the day she went missing, and kept her body in the vehicle overnight at his residence. The next day, he drove to Keonjhar—around 170 km from Bhubaneswar—where he buried the body. Police said Rout then visited the Tarini temple in Ghatagaon, offered prayers, and even clicked selfies, showing no sign of remorse.
Rout reported back to duty at the police commissionerate headquarters on September 8, behaving as if nothing had happened. That evening, Capital police investigators detained him after finding he was the last person seen with Subhamitra.
“Our suspicions deepened when we learned about their secret court marriage last year, which neither family knew of,” an officer said. The couple had not been living together, adding to the mystery of their relationship. During initial questioning, Rout maintained that their marriage was “perfect” and misled police by suggesting Subhamitra left after a fight with her parents. He even joined family members in searching for her.
The case turned when investigators accessed Subhamitra’s WhatsApp chats from her phone, left behind at home. The chats pointed to financial disputes: she had borrowed ₹10 lakh from Rout, leading to tension. Messages also showed her stress and a wish to retreat to spiritual centers like Puri, Mathura, or Varanasi.
“Rout tried to convince us she was unwell and planning a spiritual journey. But during a polygraph test, his responses were deceptive, and he eventually confessed,” police said.
