Damoh woman burnt alive, hands tied with clutch wire:Son under suspicion; villagers question rescue claim

A 60-year-old woman, identified as Halli Bai, died under suspicious circumstances after a fire broke out at her house in Madhya Pradesh’s Damoh district. Her hands and mouth were found tied with clutch wire, raising suspicion of murder. The incident took place around midnight on Saturday in Sahri village under the Tendukheda police station area. According to police, a fire broke out in a mud house where the woman lived with her son Santosh. No one else was present at the time. Santosh informed villagers about the fire, following which the police were alerted through Dial 112. Police reached the spot, but by then the roof had collapsed. Body recovered on Sunday morning The woman’s body was found buried under the debris after the structure gave way. Police removed the debris and recovered the body on Sunday morning. The circumstances have raised suspicion, particularly as the woman’s son was the only other person in the house. Police said further investigation is underway to ascertain the cause of the fire and the exact sequence of events. Son did not try to save mother, say villagers Villagers have raised questions over the incident, noting that only the mother and son were inside the house at the time of the fire. While the son informed others about the blaze and managed to come out safely, they allege he did not make any attempt to rescue his mother. Police removed the debris and recovered the woman’s body. The son is currently being questioned. Villagers allege drug addiction A villager, Nandkishor, claimed that Santosh does not work and is addicted to drugs. The family owns around two-and-a-half acres of farmland, which is their main source of income. The woman’s husband had died about 30 years ago. Police questioning son, await postmortem report Tendukheda police station in-charge Ravindra Bagri said a case has been registered and an investigation is underway. He said the son is under suspicion and is being interrogated, but no conclusion has been reached yet. Police said the exact cause of death will be determined after the postmortem report, which will clarify whether the woman died in the fire or was killed earlier.