On February 23, 2018, five days after the wedding of 26-year-old software engineer Soumya Sekhar Sahu and 22-year-old Rima in Patnagarh, Odisha, a courier parcel arrived at their residence disguised as a wedding gift from Raipur. When Soumya opened the parcel in the kitchen alongside Rima and his grandmother Jemamani Sahu, an explosive device inside detonated. Soumya and his grandmother died from their injuries, while Rima suffered severe burns and trauma but survived. Initial police investigations explored romantic rivalries, property disputes, and extortion angles due to anonymous phone threats received before the wedding. The breakthrough occurred when a misdirection letter sent to the police on April 4, 2018, was shown to Soumya's mother, Sanjukta. She recognized the handwriting and distinctive phrasing ('undertaking the project') as belonging to Punjilal Mehra, a college lecturer and former principal. Police arrested Punjilal, who confessed that he orchestrated the crude bomb attack to take revenge on Sanjukta after she replaced him as college principal in 2014.
Country: India
State/Province: Odisha, India
City/Region: Patnagarh
Incident Type: Murder
Relationship Status: Married
Relationship Duration: 5 days
Incident Date: Feb. 23, 2018
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How the relationship or connection began.
5 days
Important relationship phases recorded for this case.
Reported red flags or early concern points.
Contributing factors and possible motives from the available sources.
2018-02-23
Recorded relationship or case outcome.
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Unknown
The central conflict in this case was not driven by marital, romantic, or domestic dynamics between the newlyweds. Instead, the incident was an act of workplace vengeance and professional jealousy directed at the groom's mother, Sanjukta Sahu, by her colleague Punjilal Mehra. The offender exploited the victim's recent marriage to deliver a lethal crude bomb disguised as a wedding gift.
The primary motive was workplace rivalry and professional grudge rather than a personal relationship conflict. Investigators initially chased misdirection leads including rejected suitors, property disputes, and extortion allegations. The case turned when the victim's mother identified key linguistic habits in a suspect's letter. Punjilal Mehra was arrested and charged; court proceedings remain ongoing.
Police were initially misled by a pre-wedding threatening phone call, assuming a romantic triangle or one-sided obsession involving Rima. Further misdirection was created by fake sender names ('S.P. Sharma', 'R.K. Sharma') and an anonymous letter blaming a financial fraud of 4 crore rupees.
Punjilal Mehra lost his standing as principal when Sanjukta Sahu was appointed to the position in 2014. Driven by ongoing resentment, he learned crude bomb fabrication online, packaged the device as a wedding parcel, and routed it through a courier using an auto driver. When police received a letter trying to frame others, Sanjukta recognized Punjilal's handwriting and characteristic verbal phrase, leading directly to his arrest.
The offender demonstrated high-risk premeditation, assembling a crude explosive device using online tutorials and deliberately bypassing surveillance systems during delivery. His willingness to target uninvolved family members to inflict maximum psychological pain on his workplace rival indicates severe instrumental hostility and calculated deception.
Workplace grudges can escalate into catastrophic extreme violence against extended family members. Post-incident misdirection communications can serve as critical behavioral and linguistic evidence when evaluated by those familiar with the suspect.
Before the wedding, Soumya received an anonymous threatening call warning him not to marry. In the workplace, Punjilal exhibited intense resentment after Sanjukta replaced him as college principal.
The critical clue was an anonymous letter sent to the police on April 4, 2018, which contained the specific phrase 'undertaking the project'—a expression frequently used by Punjilal Mehra.
Forensic confirmation of a homemade crude explosive producing white smoke, private computer tracking logs from Kalahandi, courier drop-off surveillance reviews, and handwriting comparison on the misdirection letter.
Neighbors reported hearing a loud blast they initially believed to be a gas cylinder explosion. Soumya's final words to Rima were reported as: 'Rima, I feel like I am dying. Rima, save me...'. Punjilal initially claimed innocence and noted attending the victim's wedding and funeral before confessing under interrogation.
Early reports focused on love triangle and romantic rejection angles. Follow-up investigations shifted completely to workplace retaliation after the suspect's letter was linked to college lecturer Punjilal Mehra.
The criminal trial against Punjilal Mehra remains ongoing in court without final sentencing reported, despite his arrest and period on temporary parole due to his mother's illness.