JAGATSINGHPUR: Balikuda was left reeling in shock after unidentified miscreants brutally hacked a 44-year-old woman to death in her sleep and threw her body in a pond in Ogerpur village late in the night on Monday.
The son and daughter-in-law of Mania Biswal, the victim, also suffered grievous injuries in the horrifying attack which took place at around midnight. Rakesh Biswal (23) and his wife Subhadra (19) have been admitted to SCB Medical College and Hospital, Cuttack and their condition is critical.
Sources said armed with swords and other sharp weapons, masked miscreants forcibly entered Mania’s house when her family was sleeping. They started striking Mania, Rakesh and Subhadra with their weapons mercilessly. All the three sustained critical injuries in the attack. Mania died instantly due to deep cut injuries and profuse bleeding. Before leaving, the miscreants took her body and threw it in the village pond.
Hearing screams of Rakesh and Subhadra, villagers reached their house and found them lying in pools of blood. They were rushed to the district headquarters hospital (DHH), Jagatsinghpur and later shifted to SCB due to the severity of their injuries. Subsequently, Mania’s body was retrieved from the pond and sent to the DHH for postmortem.
Mania’s brother Pramod Routray lodged an FIR in Balikuda police station basing on which a case was registered. Sub-divisional police officer (SDPO) of Jagatsinghpur Rasmiranjan Sahu said forensic teams and sniffer dogs were pressed into service as part of the investigation. Police are yet to get any clue in the murder case and investigation is underway.
It is suspected that Rakesh’s in-laws might be involved in the incident. Locals said there was a dispute between Rakesh and his father-in-law who belongs to Kundeswar village within Naugaon police limits. Last year, Rakesh eloped with Subhadra and married her in a temple despite stiff opposition from her family members. Besides, Mania was at loggerheads with one of her neighbours over a piece of land.
Rakesh works in a private company in Chennai and had returned to his village on Monday last week.