Family held for thrashing and setting 63-year-old woman ablaze

The trio allegedly assaulted her with a stick and legs then took her body to the farm and set her ablaze

Family held for thrashing and setting 63-year-old woman ablaze

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A 65-year-old farmer, daughter-in-law and son have been arrested for allegedly killing his wife in Aurangabad. The accused allegedly confessed to beating the victim identified as Kamlabai Mehar (63) and burning her body when she was unresponsive. However, police suspect that they burnt her while she was still alive.

The accused identified as Bhavsingh, his son Raisingh and daughter-in-law Sangeeta allegedly had a heated argument with the victim on May 24, following which they thrashed her, took her body to their farm and burnt it. "They allegedly assaulted her with a stick as well as their fists and legs. However, after assaulting her for a while, the three thought she had died as she fell unconscious. Following this, they took her body to their farm using their bullock cart," stated Jagdish Pawar, the assistant Inspector.

According to Indian Express, the accused claimed they tried waking the victim but when she did not respond, they decided to dispose of their remains assuming she was dead. In an attempt to mislead people, Bhavsingh allegedly called the victim’s brother, Subhash Changade, who stays in Aurangabad and asked if Mehar was visiting him.

"On May 28, I informed my elder brother Mangalsingh and went to Ganeshpur area to inquire about our sister. After we reached, we saw that they were standing near a well. They claimed that they have looked everywhere, but could not find her. Bhavsingh said that she must have fallen in the well and that they were looking for her body inside," stated Subhash Changade.

Suspicious about their claim, the victim’s brothers went to Pishor police station to lodge a missing complaint. A police team reached the farm and they found ashes at the spot where the accused allegedly burned the body. "We are yet to ascertain if she was burned alive but we highly suspect that she must have fallen unconscious. They must have thought she had died. Instead of rushing her to the hospital, they took her to their farm," said Pawar. The three have been booked under sections 302 (murder), 201 (causing disappearance of evidence of offence, or giving false information to screen offender) and 34 (common intention) of the IPC.

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