Tanuja Aich, whose body was found inside an SUV near Samantarapur on Monday, was allegedly murdered by her husband following a family feud, police said on Thursday after arresting Sangram Aich, the accused, from Bengal.

The police said the SUV met with an accident while Sangram was carrying Tanuja’s body to get rid of it. The cops also arrested Sangram’s 21-year-old girlfriend, Snighdha Dash.

Police commissioner Satyajit Mohanty said the couple had a strained relationship for the past few years over Sangram’s alleged extramarital affair. They had been staying separately for the past two years. “On Sunday, Sangram had been to Tanuja’s house, and the couple had a heated argument. An enraged Sangram had pushed her, and she fell on the ground. Later, he smothered her with his hands,” said Mohanty.

The police said Sangram claimed that he had killed Tanuja unknowingly and later called Snighdha with whom he was allegedly having a relationship. “Both Sangram and Snighdha claimed that they took Tanuja to Capital Hospital but returned from its main gate. They claimed that later they had taken Tanuja to a private hospital at CDA in Cuttack, where doctors declared her dead,” said Mohanty.

The police said the SUV rammed into a truck while Sangram was on his way to drop Snighdha at her Old Town house. “Later, Sangram dumped the vehicle with Tanuja’s body at the accident spot and escaped with his five-year-old son. Snighdha has been arrested for helping Sangram in disposing of the body,” said a police officer.

Then Sangram took a bus to Balasore, from where he travelled to Bengal by train. There Sangram had also shaved his beard to hide his identity.

“We could trace his mobile phone in Bengal and subsequently nabbed him. We have also rescued the child and handed him over to the Tanuja’s family members,” said deputy commissioner of police Anup Kumar Sahoo.

The damaged vehicle was found parked with the body a few metres away from the accident spot. The woman’s head was on the driver’s seat and her body placed on the adjacent seat. The police had also found a sword and irons rods concealed in the car seat.

“Tanuja had also visited Madhyam (a women support centre) run by the police last year. The relationship strained further after a rape case had been registered against Sangram in June last year by an inmate of a women hostel run by him at Old Town. Tanuja had refused to allow Sangram to meet with his child after the incident,” said a police officer.