Victim Andrew Rodick was beaten and tortured before being rolled into a carpet and dumped in New Delhi

Andrew Raymond Rodick, 39, was identified after police found a badlydamaged passport in one of his pockets in the back streets of New Delhi.

A murder hunt has now been launched by Indian police, who are examining nearby CCTV footage to try to track the killers.

Officers say he was found rolled up in a carpet, then dumped, covered in blue plastic bags, by the roadside next to a market place.

He is thought to have been tortured before being bludgeoned to death with a blunt, heavy instrument.

They believe the body, discovered after a “foul smell” was noticed in the area, was then moved, and dumped at the edge of the road about four days ago.

His hands and feet were tied and burns were found on his arms, head and face, most likely from cigarette stubs and a lighter.

Mr Rodick appears to have been staying at a guesthouse near to where the body was discovered in the Bhogal district of Nizamuddin in south-east New Delhi.

It is understood he was in the country on a tourist visa, but it is not known what he was doing in the city.

Residents initially thought the smell was coming from a dead animal before making the horrific discovery.

New Delhi police spokesman Vijay Kumar said: “It is a murder. We found the body in a decomposed state.

“His body was then stuffed into the plastic bag. It also appears that he was stubbed by a cigarette or his skin burnt with a lighter.

“Nothing is, however, clear as the post-mortem report is not out.

“The exact cause and time of death will be clear once the report is out.”

Police are currently trying to determine whether the badly damaged passport is genuine.

It shows Mr Rodick as having arrived in the country on a tourist visa two months ago, and visiting Chennai, Mumbai and Goa, before arriving in New Delhi.

A spokesman for the Foreign Office in London said: “We can confirm the death of a British national in India on April 28.

“We are in touch with the Indian authorities and we are providing consular assistance to the family at this difficult time.”

Mr Rodick was living at a hostel at Hyde Gate, Hyde, last year when he was convicted of possessing 19 wraps of heroin and nine of crack cocaine by Basingstoke Magistrates.

He is also on the electoral role as living at another hostel in Christchurch Road in 2011.

Peter Walters, the chief executive of First Wessex which operated the hostel, said: “We are deeply saddened to hear of the death of our former resident Andrew Rodick.

“Andrew lived at Milford House in Winchester for nearly two years before leaving in February 2012.

“Milford House, along with Gordon Watson House next door, houses 35 single homeless people and supports some of the most vulnerable clients from the Winchester area.

“While living at the project, Andrew worked with our support team to re-establish contact with his family.

“Our thoughts are with his family at this very sad time.”

Mr Rodick’s Facebook account says that he was in a relationship at the time of his death and grew up in Bedford before moving to Winchester.