2 killed in brutal axe attack in Singrauli:Man kills neighbour and elderly woman over suspected black magic

‘The accused neighbour dragged my mother-in-law out of the house. He slit her throat in front of my eyes. He severed the neighbour’s head from his body. If I had gone to save her, he would have killed me too.’ With these words, Radha Singh breaks down as she recalls the events of 12 February in Aterwa village, under Jiawan police station in Singrauli district. In the early hours of that morning, her mother-in-law, Phool Kumari (50) and neighbour Kamal Singh (65) were brutally murdered. Two others, Sumitra Singh and Rambhajan Singh, were seriously injured and are undergoing treatment at Baidhan District Hospital. Police arrested the accused, 21-year-old Chhatrapati Singh, and produced him before the court on Friday. He has been taken on remand for further questioning. Read this report… Brutal attack at dawn Radha Singh, daughter-in-law of the deceased Phool Kumari, recounted the incident. The men of the household had gone to attend a wedding. She and her mother-in-law were asleep at home when, at around 4 am, neighbour Chhatrapati knocked at the door. Phool Kumari opened it. The accused claimed there was a puja at his house and asked her to come. She refused, saying rituals are not performed so early, and attempted to shut the door. At that point, he allegedly attacked her with heavy iron tongs and dragged her around 20 feet into the courtyard of his own house. Radha says she followed on hearing the commotion. The accused was then armed with an axe and repeatedly struck her mother-in-law on the neck. Phool Kumari screamed for help, but Radha, fearing for her own life, hid in a nearby field. “He was in a murderous rage. If I had stepped forward, he would have killed me, too,” she said. Neighbour beheaded while trying to help Hearing the disturbance, neighbour Kamal Singh rushed to intervene and attempted to snatch the axe. The accused then turned on him, repeatedly striking his neck. Within minutes, Kamal Singh’s head was severed from his body. The violence continued for nearly two hours. According to Radha, fear gripped the area, and no one dared raise an alarm. A post-mortem later revealed that Kamal Singh sustained 25 to 30 axe wounds, while Phool Kumari had 10 to 15. Both had deep injuries to their necks, shoulders and chests. Although an attempt was made to decapitate Phool Kumari, her head remained attached. Further assaults and police response After the killings, the accused, covered in blood, went to the house of another neighbour, Sumitra Singh. He allegedly attacked her after she opened the door. Hearing the noise, her brother-in-law, Rambhajan Singh, came out and was also assaulted. Both were injured. Around 6 am, villagers who had attended the wedding were informed and quickly returned. The police arrived by approximately 6:30 am. Disturbing scene at the house SDOP Gayatri Mishra described the scene. The 20-by-30-foot mud house had a courtyard with a small earthen platform built just two days earlier. Four coconuts, vermilion and incense sticks were placed on it. A large pair of iron tongs was embedded in the platform. Kamal Singh’s severed head lay near the coconuts, while his torso was a short distance away. Phool Kumari’s body also lay nearby. Inside the house, the accused, his wife Shanti, and his mother Heera Kali had locked themselves in a room. Fearing he was still armed, police called in more than 20 personnel and cordoned off the area. After repeated appeals from villagers, Heera Kali opened the door around 9 am, nearly two and a half hours later. Suspicion of black magic During questioning, police learned that the accused’s father had died six months ago. About six weeks earlier, his wife had suffered a miscarriage at two-and-a-half months. According to investigators, Chhatrapati suspected Phool Kumari of practising black magic and blamed her for his family’s misfortunes. His wife stated that he had begun performing rituals about a month ago, despite never previously engaging in worship. Since the miscarriage, he had grown irritable and violent, even assaulting her. His mother said they were too frightened to intervene during the attack, fearing he would kill them as well. Police believe the killings were driven by superstition and deteriorating mental stability. The investigation is ongoing.