GUWAHATI: An 18-year-old girl has gone missing under mysterious circumstances from the Basistha area of Guwahati since early Friday morning.
The missing girl was identified as Khushi Kumari.
According to Khushi's mother, her daughter had left home around 8.30 a.m. to open their shop but failed to return.
Alarmed by her prolonged absence, the family rushed to the shop, only to discover her belongings - a bracelet, hair clip, bag, and the shop key - lying abandoned on the ground.
Suspecting foul play, the family feared she may have been abducted.
A formal complaint has been lodged at the Basistha Police Station.
Police have launched an investigation and initiated search operations to trace the missing teenager.
Meanwhile, as public outrage mounts and demands for a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe grow louder over the "mysterious" death of 26-year-old Rosmita Hojai of Assam, the Uttarakhand Police have, for now, ruled out foul play, stating that preliminary evidence points to suicide.
Officials at Shivpuri Police Station in Tehri Garhwal district said initial findings suggest that Rosmita may have taken her own life.
"So far, no indications of foul play have emerged. While we suspect suicide, the investigation remains open. The post-mortem examination has been conducted, though the final report is still awaited, " police officials said.
Hojai, a young woman from the Dimasa community in Assam's Dima Hasao district, went missing on June 5 while travelling to Delhi for a Railway Recruitment Board (RRB) examination.
Her body was discovered five days later, on June 10, near a riverbank in Pauri Garhwal district. In connection with the case, police detained two individuals for questioning - Hemant Sharma of Mohindergarh (Delhi) and Pankaj Kokar from Rohtak, Haryana.
Investigators revealed that Hojai had a verbal altercation with her alleged boyfriend, Hemant, at the very location where her body was later recovered.
"She had come to appear for a competitive exam - a naturally stressful situation. The argument with Hemant may have affected her mental state. But any definitive conclusion will depend on the autopsy report, expected in the coming days, " said a police official.