GUWAHATI, Sept 7: In a chilling crime that has left the city in shock, a 25-year-old woman was brutally murdered in her rented flat in Guwahati’s Hatigaon area, her head severed and stored in a refrigerator while her body lay decomposing on the floor.
Police recovered the partially decomposed and decapitated body of Riya Talukdar Goswami from the third-floor flat at Anjali Griha in Basisthapur (Hatigaon) on Sunday night after neighbours and family members raised an alert over a foul smell and the couple’s unexplained disappearance. Her severed head, wrapped in a polythene bag, was found inside the refrigerator. Some of her fingers had also been cut off.
The prime accused, her husband Ramanuj (also referred to as Ramanujan) Goswami, a cab and Uber driver in his late 20s hailing from Gauripur in Dhubri district, surrendered before Hatigaon police and confessed to the killing. He alleged that frequent arguments over his wife’s supposed extramarital affair had driven him to lose control.
According to senior police officers, the couple had been married for about six months and lived together in the rented accommodation. Riya, a resident of Noonmati who had worked in a boutique until recently, and Ramanuj were last contacted by family members two days earlier. When calls went unanswered and phones remained switched off, relatives informed the police.
A team from Hatigaon Police Station reached the flat around 9.45 pm on Sunday. The door was found unlocked or open. Inside, officers discovered Riya’s body on the floor with the head missing. A search of the premises led them to the refrigerator, where the severed head was recovered in a black polythene bag. Forensic experts examined the crime scene and collected evidence. Police also seized a dao (machete) believed to have been used in the attack, along with several liquor bottles.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (East) and other officers told reporters that Ramanuj claimed the couple quarrelled on the morning of September 3. The argument continued into the early hours. “He lost his temper at one point and killed her,” a senior officer said, quoting the accused’s confession. Ramanuj further alleged that Riya had remained in contact with a former lover, which he said was a recurring source of conflict. These claims remain under investigation.
Police believe the murder occurred 24 to 48 hours before the body was discovered, as decomposition had already set in. Neighbours reported hearing loud arguments and screams from the flat on the relevant night, after which Ramanuj reportedly locked the room from outside and left.
A case has been registered at Hatigaon Police Station under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, including those pertaining to murder. Ramanuj was produced before a local court, which remanded him to police custody for further interrogation. Investigators are examining the sequence of events, the motive, and all available evidence, including forensic findings.
The gruesome nature of the crime—decapitation and the storage of the severed head in a domestic refrigerator—has drawn widespread attention and condemnation across Assam. Police have urged the public not to speculate while the probe continues.
Senior officers emphasised that the investigation is at a preliminary stage and that every detail provided by the accused is being verified. The body was sent to Guwahati Medical College and Hospital for post-mortem examination.
The incident has once again highlighted the darker undercurrents of domestic discord that can escalate into extreme violence. Authorities have assured that the law will take its course without delay.