According to the police, Rajendra Shah, a resident of Pidariya-9 of Sarlahi, killed his brother Rameshwor, six-month pregnant sister-in law Surakiya and their nine years old daughter Khusbu.[break]
Although they recovered only Surakiya´s dead body on the banks of Lakhandehi River, around five kilometers down from her house, police believe that Rajendra massacred his brother´s entire family over a longstanding dispute over ancestral property.
According to SP Mohan Raj Joshi, chief of Sarlahi district police, three separate streaks of dried blood can be seen on the spot. “These lines lead to the river that flows close by,” SP Joshi said. “It clearly shows that all three were murdered and thrown into the river.”
As the river is swelling due to monsoon rains, police say it would be difficult to find the remaining two dead bodies of Rameshwor and his daughter Khusbu. Police are searching for the dead bodies.
Rajendra´s whole family had vanished from the village before locals learnt about the murders. Rajendra has a family of 11 including his wife, sons, their wives and grand children. He has locked up his house, and left all cattle tied to their sheds.
Police have recovered two home-made pistols and two rounds of bullets from the crime scene. However, police say the killer of Rameshwor´s family must have used a sharp weapon instead of pistols.
The families of Rajendra and Rameshwor had long been disputing over the ownership of five bighas of ancestral land. They had even moved the court. A hearing over their case is due on August 7. Although Rajendra and Rameshwor used to engage in verbal quarrel quite often in the past, neighbors never anticipated such a dreadful crime.
This is the second case of mass murder over property dispute in Sarlahi district in less than two months. Earlier on June 21, Pradip Majhi, 22, a resident of Rajghat VDC-1 of Sarlahi, had committed suicide after killing his brother Prakash and sister-in-law Rita. They also had been disputing over the ownership of a piece of ancestral land.
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