SAMBALPUR: Bodies of an elderly woman and her 98-year-old mother were recovered from the first floor of a house in Hatpada within Sadar police limits late on Tuesday night.
The deceased were identified as Sairendri Dixit (62) and her mother Snehalata Dixit (98). While Sairendri was burnt alive in the kitchen, her bed-ridden mother was found dead in another room.
As per police, Dixits’ neighbours noticed smoke emanating from the windows of their house at around 10.30 pm. They rushed to the house and found that Sairendri was reportedly on fire and running around for help.
Police and fire services personnel rushed to the spot and doused the blaze but by then, Sairendri had sustained critical burn injuries and Snehalata who was in the other room was dead but had no injuries on her body. While the cause of the fire is yet to be ascertained, the victims’ family suspects foul play.
Sairendri’s younger sister, Indrani Purohit said, “I suspect it to be murder. My sister was killed first and then set ablaze.” She said Sairendri and her brother were involved in a land dispute. “I assume my brother and his son are involved in the murder,” she said.
Meanwhile, police have initiated an investigation into the matter. Sadar SDPO, Tophan Bag said, “Both the bodies were recovered from two different rooms of the house. One of the deceased sustained burn injuries and her face was identifiable. The other deceased was found in her room. When we checked, both the burners of the stove were on. The bodies were sent for autopsy on Wednesday morning. We are yet to ascertain if it was a fire mishap.”