A major police controversy erupted on Saturday, March 1, after the body of a young woman was discovered inside a suitcase in Haryana’s Rohtak city. The body was discovered folded inside the suitcase, with a scarf wrapped around her neck and mehendi on her hands.
The political dispute emerged after the Congress party claimed that the deceased woman was Himani Narwal, an active worker of their party and demanded a high-level probe into what they described as a shocking and tragic murder.
According to the reports, Narwal’s body was found on February 28 near the Sampla bus station. Police were informed about it, prompting local authorities to launch immediate action into the murder case. A forensic investigation team was also sent to the location.
Forensics identified the victim, aged 20 to 22, and she may have been murdered before her body was abandoned at the place of discovery.
Speaking on the case, Sampla police station SHO Bijendra Singh confirmed the ongoing investigation, stating, “We received information that a body was found inside a suitcase in the bushes along the highway. The FSL team reached the spot, and further investigation will be done. It seems that the body was thrown here after the murder. Further investigation is underway.”
Political row
The political row intensified after Congress MLA Bharat Bhushan Batra claimed that Narwal had attended Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Yatra and participated in the election campaign with senior Congress leaders Bhupinder Singh Hooda and Deepinder Hooda.
Meanwhile, former Haryana chief minister and Congress Haryana president Bhupinder Singh Hooda condemned the murder as a “blot on the law and order situation of the state.” He expressed his condolences to Narwal’s family and demanded a “high-level” and “impartial” probe into the incident.
“The news of the barbaric murder of active Congress worker Himani Narwal in Rohtak is extremely sad and shocking. I pay my tribute to the departed soul and express my deepest condolences to the family members. The murder of a girl in this manner and finding her body in a suitcase is extremely sad and shocking. This in itself is a blot on the law and order situation of the state,” Hooda wrote on X.
“There should be a high-level impartial investigation of this murder, and the government should provide justice to the victim’s family as soon as possible and provide the harshest punishment to the culprits”, he added.
Himani Narwal’s mother Savita says, “This is my sincere request from the depths of my sorrow to Asha Hooda as my daughter was very close to her. If my daughter does not get justice, I will not perform her last rites.”
Haryana civic polls
The timing of the incident coincides with the Haryana municipal elections, being held on Sunday. The results will be declared on March 12. The elections will determine mayors and ward members in seven municipal corporations, as well as municipal councils and committees across the state.
Polling will take place for the mayoral positions and ward councillors in seven key municipal corporations, including Gurugram, Manesar, Faridabad, Hisar, Rohtak, Karnal and Yamunanagar.
Additionally, polls will be conducted in Ambala and Sonepat for the mayoral posts, following the election of former mayors Shakti Rani Sharma (Ambala) and Nikhil Madan (Sonepat) to the state assembly.
