The disappearance of a bride-to-be just hours before her wedding in Uttar Pradesh’s Muzaffarnagar district, a police complaint alleging abduction, and a social media post about her “death” sent investigators into a tizzy and sparked a massive manhunt, which ended after the woman was found in Madhya Pradesh’s Gwalior.

According to police sources, the chaos began on Tuesday evening, when the woman, Sushmana Sharma left her house to visit a beauty parlour, just hours before her marriage with Bharat Bhushan.

After the woman failed to return home and could not be traced, her family filed a police complaint, alleging she was abducted.

However, in a bid to save face in front of guests and relatives, the groom’s family posted on social media that the wedding could not take place as Sushmana died of a heart attack, the sources said.

The social media post, the sources added, went viral as netizens extended their sympathies to the groom’s family over the “devastating” development. 

The inconsistent claims by the woman’s family and the groom’s side left police puzzled, prompting them to launch a thorough investigation into the matter. 

New Mandi Circle Officer Rupali Roy Chowdhary told reporters that with the help of CCTV footage, the investigators tracked the bride’s movement and after hours of an intensive search, found her in Gwalior at around 8am on Wednesday. 

“Immediately upon receiving information about the woman’s disappearance, the police registered a case and formed two teams to trace her. She was found in Gwalior the following morning,” Ms Chowdhary said. 

The police did not provide any details but the sources said the woman escaped because she was not ready to marry Bharat. The sources also said the woman escaped with the help of a female friend. 

Asked about the rumour about the woman’s death on social media, Ms Chowdhary said: “A probe is underway.”