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Presumed dead 3 years ago, Gonda woman found alive and kicking in Lucknow
Missing for over three years, a Gonda woman was found in Lucknow after a Facebook photo led police to her. She was living with her partner.
Presumed dead after her disappearance over three years ago, a Gonda woman was found to be living in Lucknow, all due to a recent photo of hers posted on Facebook.
The woman, then 29, allegedly disappeared from her in-laws’ residence in Gonda on May 5, 2021. Even as police had registered an FIR for dowry death in the case, her family and in-laws, meanwhile, were fighting legal battles after they had levelled allegations of murder for dowry and kidnapping against each other.
It was only after the Allahabad high court sought a report over police findings in the case which propelled officials to rejuvenate their search for the woman. She was found to be living with her partner at his residence in Lucknow’s Daliganj on Saturday, and produced before the court of chief judicial magistrate (CJM) in Gonda on Monday.
Gonda superintendent of police (SP) Vineet Kumar Jaiswal said the woman, Kavita Devi, now 32, had been living with her partner Satya Narain Gupta at his house in Lucknow since May 2021. After her court appearance, she was allowed to continue living with Gupta as per her will.
“While probing the woman’s old Facebook account, the police found a recent photograph of Kavita posted from a different account that belongs to one Vasu Gupta. Gonda police retrieved the Facebook account details and IP address of the mobile from which the account was last operated. The mobile number was found to be operational in Lucknow,” the SP added.
“The case was like an albatross around the neck...it was a challenge to solve the mystery behind the woman’s disappearance. Thankfully no crime was committed in the matter...” he added.
Sharing further details, Gonda city Kotwali in-charge Manoj Kumar Pathak said the case was first registered as that of disappearance, but was later altered into murder over dowry demand on March 18, 2022. He said the woman’s family had lodged an FIR against her husband Vinay Kumar, his two brothers, Niranjan and Ratan Kumar, sisters Laado and mother Kanti Devi.
The woman’s in-laws, on December 20, 2022, filed a counter case of kidnapping of the woman against her family,” Pathak added.
He added that the legal battle between the two families gradually reached the high court around six months ago after which the police were asked to file a report on the matter.
