A 12-year-old Class 6 student was killed after a speeding truck ran her over in Gunderdehi village of Chhattisgarh’s Mohla-Manpur-Ambagarh Chowki district, triggering a dramatic 55-km police chase in which the driver allegedly kept breaking barricades to escape arrest.

The victim, identified as Poonam, was standing by the roadside when the truck hit her on Friday morning. Police said the driver, identified as Devi Singh from Uttar Pradesh, appeared to be heavily intoxicated and fled the scene in a desperate attempt to avoid being caught.

What followed was a high-speed chase that moved through multiple police checkpoints. Officers first tried to stop the truck in the Mohla area, but the driver rammed through the barricades and sped away. A second blockade near Manpur was also broken through, and police personnel narrowly escaped being hit in the process.

According to police, the truck was moving at around 120 kmph during the escape. The driver reportedly showed no sign of slowing down, even as teams from several police stations joined the pursuit. The chase created panic on the highway, with motorists and bystanders watching the vehicle tear through barricades and flee ahead of the police convoy.

The pursuit finally ended near Korkoti, between the Manpur and Kohka police station limits, when the truck went out of control and veered off the road into a roadside ditch. Police then overpowered the driver and took him into custody. He also suffered injuries during the crash and was taken to Manpur hospital for treatment.

Poonam’s death sparked anger in Gunderdehi village. Residents placed her body on the road and blocked traffic, demanding strict action against the accused driver and justice for the family. The protest brought movement on the stretch to a halt until senior administrative and police officers reached the spot and held talks with villagers.

The officials assured the crowd that action would be taken, after which the blockade was withdrawn. The body was later sent to Ambagarh Chowki hospital for post-mortem.

Police are now examining the circumstances of the crash, the driver’s alleged drunken condition, and the sequence of barricade breaches during the escape. Officers said the viral video of the chase is also being reviewed as part of the investigation.

The incident has once again raised concerns about drunken driving, highway safety and the risks police face during vehicle checks on busy routes. Locals said the case should send a strong message, especially when a child has lost her life and officers had to risk being run over while stopping the accused.

A 5-year-old boy’s body was found in three pieces in a forest near Dindori on Monday. The child, Imran, had been missing since June 17, and police had been searching for him for four days.

Imran’s father, Ikhhtiyar Khan, a resident of Tarera village in the Karanjia police station area, had gone to the forest to collect wood. Early that morning, Imran got up after sleeping and followed his father into the forest. Family members assumed the child was with his father.

When Ikhhtiyar returned home with the wood and asked about his son, the family realised he was missing. They first searched the neighbourhood but could not find him, so they reported the child’s disappearance to the police.

Police formed a team and launched a search operation in the forest and nearby villages. The news of the disappearance was also shared on social media. On Monday, the child’s body was found about 1.5 kilometres from the village.

Police said the body was discovered in three pieces inside the forest. Senior police officers reached the spot immediately after the information arrived. A team of doctors was also called to the scene for the post-mortem.

The cause of death is not yet clear. Police are gathering full details from the father and family members, and the investigation is ongoing.

Why it matters: the tragedy has left the family shattered and sparked concern in the village about safety and the dangers of the forest. Police say they will continue the investigation to determine how the child died.

Three days after a 23-year-old woman was buried without a post-mortem in a village in Chhattisgarh's Korba district, police exhumed her body following a complaint by her family alleging murder. The case, centred on Ghurai Bai of Chhirhut village under Shyang police station limits, has set off a confrontation between the woman's natal family and her husband, with the two sides offering starkly different accounts of how she died.

Ghurai, originally from Kuma village in Raigarh district, had been married to Dilip Baiga of Chhirhut for about three years. The couple has a one-and-a-half-year-old child. She died on 16 June. The following day, her body was buried without any post-mortem examination — a fact that immediately raised suspicions among her relatives when they arrived and learned of the circumstances.

Her family filed a written complaint at Shyang police station, alleging that Dilip had frequently quarrelled with and beaten Ghurai over suspected infidelity, and that her death was not natural. They accused him of killing her and hastily disposing of the body to conceal the crime.

Police took the complaint seriously. On 19 June, a team comprising the Sub-Divisional Officer of Police, the station in-charge, the Scene of Crime unit and administrative officials reached the village and supervised the exhumation. The body was retrieved in the presence of a large number of villagers, a panchnama was conducted, and the remains were sent for post-mortem.

Dilip Baiga has denied all allegations. He maintained that his wife fell suddenly ill and died of a natural illness, calling the murder accusations entirely baseless.

The Additional Superintendent of Police confirmed that Shyang police have recorded statements from the deceased's family and registered an unnatural death case. The actual cause of death, he said, will be determined only after post-mortem and forensic examination reports are received, and further legal action will follow accordingly.

The child's future has also become a point of concern in the village. Ghurai's family has said that if the investigation confirms foul play, they will demand justice not just for her but for the infant left behind.

High Court cancels anticipatory bail as CBI records 360-degree visuals of Giribala Singh’s Katara Hills home

The Central Bureau of Investigation on Thursday moved rapidly after the Madhya Pradesh High Court cancelled anticipatory bail for retired judge Giribala Singh in the high-profile death of 22-year-old Twisha Sharma, officials and sources said, with investigators conducting detailed digital mapping of the accused’s house and questioning her at the residence. According to sources familiar with the probe, Giribala could be arrested any time.

Order and timing

The High Court’s 17-page order, issued late on Wednesday, set aside the anticipatory bail granted earlier by a trial court. The bench observed that given the seriousness of the allegations, the evidence on record and the present stage of the investigation, relief was not warranted. The court noted multiple injury marks on Twisha’s body and said the accused had not offered satisfactory explanations, according to a copy of the order made available to reporters.

CBI activity at scene

A CBI team reached Giribala Singh’s home in the Katara Hills area of Bhopal around 10.30 am on Thursday and began questioning her, officials said. Investigators installed a high-intensity 3D camera inside the residence to take precise measurements and record 360-degree visuals of the first floor and other areas, part of a broader effort to recreate the crime scene and preserve digital evidence.

“Teams are recording the internal layout, the heights of walls and vantage points that could help corroborate statements,” an official involved in the probe said on condition of anonymity. The visuals are being added to the case file as scientific evidence, the source added.

Sequence of events

Twisha, who was married in 2023, died on the night of May 12 and was taken to AIIMS Bhopal, where an initial post-mortem recorded hanging marks and other injuries, the court order said. Police seized mobile phones and a DVR from the house the same day. The trial court had earlier granted anticipatory bail after noting certain WhatsApp messages that primarily complained about the husband and financial transfers into Twisha’s account. That order has now been overturned following a deeper review by the High Court.

Allegations and evidence

Prosecutors and investigating agencies contend WhatsApp chats and statements from Twisha’s family indicate alleged mental harassment, pressure to abort a pregnancy and demands for dowry. The High Court flagged inconsistencies in the defence account and raised concerns about potential attempts to influence the probe, noting public statements that could have tarnished the deceased’s image.

The post-mortem, the court said, found injuries that could not be explained simply as marks sustained while cutting down a body, making custodial interrogation of key accused necessary. The CBI has also been examining call detail records, digital backups and CCTV footage, and is probing whether any footage was tampered with, officials said.

Custody and questioning

Twisha’s husband, Samarth Singh, remains in CBI remand until May 29 as investigators try to reconstruct his whereabouts on the night of May 12 and reconcile his statements with technical evidence. Sources said the agency is also tracing contacts he had while allegedly absconding and matching his movements with phone records and digital footprints.

Security and ground reaction

Security around Giribala’s home was tightened on Thursday, with additional police personnel deployed in the neighbourhood. Local residents and journalists gathered outside the house; a reporter from a Bhopal daily filed live updates as the CBI proceeded. In a brief sighting on Thursday morning, Giribala was seen outside feeding street dogs, one source said.

What happens next

With anticipatory bail vacated and the CBI actively recording and analysing scene visuals, officials say an arrest could follow if questioning and evidence review point to custodial needs. The agency is expected to seek formal remand if it decides to take Giribala into custody. Court filings and formal charges, if any, will determine the next legal steps.

Investigators stressed that the probe is ongoing and that conclusions will rely on the forensic, digital and circumstantial evidence being assembled. The CBI declined immediate comment; the High Court registry confirmed the order but did not offer further comment beyond the written judgment.

Delhi AIIMS four-member team conducts second post-mortem at Bhopal AIIMS; family says funeral likely this evening

A four-member team from Delhi AIIMS began a second post-mortem on the body of actress Twisha Sharma at Bhopal AIIMS on Sunday, officials said, as tight security remained in and around the hospital morgue. The development comes amid competing claims from the actress’s natal and marital families and fresh legal and investigative moves, including a direction for possible CBI involvement.

Second post-mortem underway
According to hospital sources, the AIIMS team reached Bhopal late Saturday night and started the judicial procedure early Sunday morning. Police and hospital security personnel were deployed around the mortuary and adjacent corridors to manage access. The entire process is to be video-recorded, as ordered by the Madhya Pradesh High Court.

Family statement on funeral
Major Harshit, Twisha’s brother, told reporters that the family plans to perform the last rites at Bhadbhada crematorium at 5 pm today, subject to completion of post-mortem formalities. He declined to comment on whether the actress’s husband or in‑laws would attend. The family has also sought swift transfer of the case to the CBI, a demand vocalised by Twisha’s father, Navnidhi Sharma.

Court and probe developments
The case drew national attention after the Supreme Court took suo motu cognisance and listed the matter for hearing before a bench led by the Chief Justice on Monday. Earlier, the Madhya Pradesh High Court ordered a second post-mortem, directing that it be led by the AIIMS director and that the police keep the body under safe custody until the procedure is complete.

On Saturday, Bhopal district court sent Twisha’s husband, identified as Samarth Singh, to seven days’ police remand after his production before the magistrate. The court also ordered seizure of his passport. Police said a look-out notice had been issued earlier amid concerns of possible flight from the country.

Sequence of events
Initial police records show Twisha, a 28-year-old actor and daughter-in-law of retired judge Giribala Singh, returned to her residence in the Katara Hills area of Bhopal on the night of May 12. CCTV from the parlour showed her arriving around 6 pm. Samarth told investigators that the couple went for a stroll and later watched television; he said Twisha spoke on the phone with family and then went to another room. He said he later fell asleep and woke to find her missing.

Samarth and family accounts
In statements to police, Samarth said the couple’s relationship had been “normal” after marriage in December 2025 but that Twisha’s behaviour had changed after pregnancy was confirmed on April 17. He said she had travelled to Ajmer and Delhi briefly in April and returned to Bhopal on April 30. Samarth claimed Twisha had left a mark of distress in calls with her mother on the night in question and that his mother discovered Twisha hanging from an elastic exercise band on the terrace.

Police said CPR was administered and Twisha was taken to AIIMS Bhopal, where doctors declared her dead. Investigators, however, maintain that statements are being cross-checked and that Samarth’s account contains inconsistencies. “We are probing the sequence of events on May 12 and will examine all forensic leads,” an officer familiar with the probe said.

Legal fallout
The Bar Council of India on May 22 suspended Samarth’s right to practice; the BCI chairman confirmed the order. In the state High Court, the in‑laws’ request to hand over the body to the husband on religious grounds was rejected. The court has issued notices to multiple parties, including retired judge Giribala Singh, whose anticipatory bail the father has challenged.

State and central involvement
Chief Minister Dr. Mohan Yadav said the state government had written to the Centre for CBI assistance; officials told reporters the state has conveyed willingness for central investigation. The father’s delegation met the chief minister on May 20 seeking an independent probe; the CM reportedly assured cooperation.

What happens next
Police said Samarth will be questioned further, including on the spot where the incident occurred and on movements from the day in question up to his arrest. Investigators plan to recreate timelines and collate CCTV and call data records. The second post-mortem report — expected later Sunday — could shape the next legal steps, including the family’s decision on where final rites will be held.

Hearings are scheduled in both the High Court and local courts on Monday and Tuesday: the High Court will continue its oversight while a Bhopal district court will hear an application to cancel Giribala Singh’s anticipatory bail.