Decades-Old Murder Mystery Resurfaces: Excavation Begins at Long-Lost Well on Sambhal Riots Anniversary

The roots of a large tree have grown into the well, making excavation a challenge.

In March 1978 Ramsharan Rastogi, a grocery store owner in Uttar Pradesh's Sambhal, was allegedly murdered and his body disposed of in a well directly across from his shop in Mahmud Khan Sarai, then a thriving marketplace in a town that experienced 72 hours of communal violence.

His body was reportedly bound to a weighing scale before being thrown into the well, condemned to its depths. The remains were never recovered. According to media reports from that time, the well was subsequently filled and covered. Though Rastogi's grieving family filed a police complaint, no action was taken.

Today, 47 years and 244 days later, authorities have finally taken action; district officials commenced excavation of the well, now buried beneath decades of decomposed vegetation and multiple layers of soil, gravel, and stones.

Ironically, it is the anniversary of another instance of communal unrest — the November 2024 riots — that ultimately brought authorities back to the well. On Monday, police forces, deployed to maintain order on the first anniversary of the 2024 riots, were approached by members of the Rastogi family.

District Magistrate Rajendra Pensiya and Superintendent of Police KK Bishnoi were present in the Mahmud Khan market when Sushil Rastogi, Ramsharan's nephew, implored them to take action.

And they responded, ordering the excavation of a well many locals didn't even know existed while others had forgotten, perhaps deliberately. The excavation work began on Wednesday.

Thus far, no significant discoveries have been made; no body, bones, or skeletal remains have been found.

This narrative actually encompasses two separate days and two distinct communal riots.

The first occurred in March 1978. The second took place in November 2024.

Last year, a court-appointed survey team, instructed to inspect the local Shahi Jama Masjid following claims it was constructed over a demolished Hindu temple – an increasingly common narrative – encountered violence after rumors spread that they intended to excavate portions of the 16th century, Mughal-era mosque.

Though the team had legal authorization – although reports indicate their mandate was to survey rather than explicitly excavate in an archaeological sense – communal distrust intensified by a statewide pattern of courts being petitioned to order surveys of historic mosques, allegations they were built over temples, rumors of desecration, and reports of inflammatory chanting resulted in violence that claimed five lives.