Police said a milkman went to deliver milk and reported a foul odour and seeping blood, leading to the discovery of the body five days after the man died

A 42-year-old man’s body was found at his home in Madhya Pradesh’s Vidisha five days after his death, with his mother by his side, praying for his revival by keeping a Bible on his chest, police said on Tuesday.

Police said the matter came to light after a milkman went to deliver milk and reported a foul odour and seeping blood, leading to the discovery of the body . They added that they rushed to the scene and sent the body for a post-mortem.

Vidisha police superintendent Rohit Kashwani said the man worked for a fashion designer company in Mumbai. “His mother is a retired teacher. Following his father’s death, he had been living in Vidisha with his mother for the past year. His two brothers live abroad. The man was ill, and the mother was depressed and never spoke to anyone in the locality.”

He added that the mother told the milkman that “everyone” killed her son. “He [milkman] alerted the neighbours and police,” said Kashwani. He added that the neighbours told police the foul smell had been coming for three to four days. “The woman was seen working as usual, so nobody suspected anything untoward.”

Kashwani said the woman initially did not allow police to touch the body. “The police seized the body after a struggle and informed the relatives and brothers of the deceased. The woman has been under observation, and a statement is being registered in the presence of a counsellor to determine how the fashion designer died,” said Kashwani, as police waited for the post-mortem report to know the cause of death.