The body of a police official's wife, who reportedly jumped into the river from MV Sundarban-16 launch, has been recovered from Kirtonkhola River.
The deceased, Alo Majumdar, 37, was found floating in the river on Tuesday morning, confirmed Sub-Inspector (SI) Md. Asadul Al Galib of Barisal Sadar Naval Police Station.
Alo Majumdar, a mother of two children, was daughter of Krishnakanta Majumdar from Norerkathi village in Banaripara, Barisal. Her husband Anup Roy is an inspector of Police Bureau of Investigation (PBI) in Patuakhali district.
According to SI Galib, the MV Sundarban-16 departed from Barisal's river port for Dhaka on Monday night. Around that time, authorities received reports of a woman jumping into the river from the launch.
On Tuesday morning, news arrived of a body floating near Pashur Kathi in Char Monai union. Being infromed, police recovered the body and sent it to Sher-e-Bangla Medical College Hospital's morgue, where the family later identified it.
Galib stated that the body would be handed over to the family following an autopsy and appropriate legal actions will be taken.
Alo Majumdar's brother, Manju Majumdar, revealed that she had been suffering from mental health issues. She lived with her family in a rented house near Kashipur Passport Office in Barisal. On Monday morning, she left home to recharge her mobile phone but never returned. The family had filed a general diary with the Airport Police Station after she went missing.
Barisal Airport Police Station officer-in-charge Zakir Sardar confirmed that Alo Majumdar's sister had reported her as mentally unstable and missing since 10 AM on Monday. Acting on this, the police initiated an investigation, which led to the discovery of the body.
On Monday night, a passenger aboard the MV Sundarban-16 live-streamed on Facebook, reporting that a woman had jumped into the river. Despite attempts to locate her, the search was unsuccessful.
Mohammad Babul, a clerk on the Sundarban-16, mentioned that the incident occurred around 11 PM near Bamnichar. Despite searching for two hours, the woman could not be found, and the launch resumed its journey to Dhaka after notifying the naval police and Coast Guard.
Sanatan Chandra Sarkar, OC of Barisal Sadar Naval Police Station, said a 999 emergency call led them to recover the body on Tuesday morning. The body was later transported to the hospital morgue. Preliminary examinations revealed no visible injuries but the full autopsy report will provide more details.
