He went missing last year. (Representational)
More than three months after he went missing, the skeletal remains of a 65-year-old local Congress leader were found in the forest area of Niwas town in Mandla district of the state, a police official said on Wednesday.
The dead, Hari Lal Maravi, who had been missing since October last year, was not keeping well mentally for the past one year, he said.
The remains of Maravi were found in the bushes of Badhiya Tendu forest area by his family members, who identified him on the basis of his clothes and Congress party 'gamcha' (scarf-like shoulder cloth), Niwas police station in-charge Suresh Solanki said.
Prima facie, it appears that he died of starvation in the forest area and it is also possible that wild animals devoured his body parts, he said.
"Maravi was not keeping well mentally for nearly a year. In the past also, he had gone away from home without informing anybody. This time, he went away in a similar manner and probably lost his way in the forest area," he said.
"A forensic team will examine the remains and post-mortem will be conducted to know the exact cause of the death," Mr Solanki added.
Only the skull and bones of legs were recovered from the spot, he said.
Maravi had gone missing on October 28 last year. On November 1, his family members had filed a missing person's report with the police, he said.
"The skeleton was found by Maravi's family members as they were looking for him in different areas on a daily basis ever since he went missing," the official said.
Hirna Chapar village sarpanch Kanshi Ram said that Maravi was a member of the local janpad panchayat and also the block president of Kisan Congress.
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