Nabarangpur: Police today arrested a couple over the duo's alleged involvement in killing a 21-year-old woman and chopping her body into 31 pieces in Odisha's Nabarangpur district.

The accused have been identified as Chandra Rout (27) and his wife of Muramdihi village under Raighar police limits in the district.

Body of the deceased, identified as Tilabai Gond of Baghabeda village, was exhumed by police from a forest near Muramdihi on Saturday.

According to a source, Tilabai was in a love relationship with the married man for the last two years. On Wednesday evening, she went to Chandra’s house located around 10 kilometers away from her place and insisted on getting married to him.

Hatching a plan to eliminate Tilabai, Chandra and his wife killed the former. Later, they carried her body to the forest and buried it there after cutting it into 31 pieces.

Raighar police have registered a case under Sections 302 and 201 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) in this connection. Further probe by police was underway.