Elderly woman found dead under mysterious circumstances in Chamarajanagar village

Chamarajanagar, : An 84-year-old woman living alone was found dead under mysterious circumstances in Bannisari village of Yelandur taluk in Chamarajanagar district, raising suspicion of possible murder for money and jewellery.

The deceased has been identified as Siddamma (84), who was reportedly living independently despite having three children. According to villagers, she preferred to lead a self-reliant life and ran a small petty shop near her house to support herself.

The incident came to light on Sunday morning when neighbours noticed that Siddamma had not opened her shop as usual. Residents of the area said she normally opened the shop early in the morning and interacted regularly with people in the locality.

However, when the shop remained closed for a long time and she did not step out of the house, neighbours grew suspicious and went to check on her. When they entered the house, they found Siddamma lying dead, prompting them to alert the police.

The discovery of the body has raised serious concerns as some of the valuables she was known to possess were reportedly missing. According to family members, gold ornaments worn by Siddamma, including a pair of gold earrings and a gold chain, were not found at the scene.

In addition to the jewellery, around ₹50,000 in cash that she had reportedly kept at home is also suspected to be missing. Her children have alleged that the elderly woman may have been murdered by unknown persons for the sake of money and gold ornaments.

Relatives said that Siddamma was in relatively good health despite her age and was actively managing her small shop. They also claimed that she had recently kept aside money to repair her house before the upcoming monsoon season.

“She was healthy and used to run her small shop on her own. We suspect someone might have targeted her after knowing she had cash and jewellery,” a family member alleged.

Police from Mamballi Police Station visited the spot soon after receiving information about the incident and conducted a preliminary inspection of the house and surrounding area.

Officials said the exact cause of death is yet to be determined. A case of unnatural death has been registered and further investigation is underway to ascertain whether Siddamma died of natural causes or if she was murdered for robbery.

Police are also questioning neighbours and local residents to gather more information about any suspicious movement in the area before the incident.

Authorities said the truth behind the elderly woman’s death will become clearer after the post-mortem report and further investigation.