Sidhi temple priest attacked and killed publicly:Accused arrested after brutal assault, administration seals his house and illegal shop

The sound of its bell rolls on my chest like a snake. One day I will shut it down forever… These are the words of the person who murdered a 75-year-old priest returning home after performing prayers at the temple on Mahashivratri. Without any reason, the accused repeatedly attacked the priest with a knife on the way until he died. Even after giving such a horrifying death, his brutality did not diminish. He said to people- I gave salvation to the priest on Mahashivratri. Now he won’t need to wander anymore. Dainik Bhaskar team reached Kusmi, 150 km from Rewa, to investigate the priest’s murder on Mahashivratri. A shocking story emerged here. The family broke down crying in front of the camera. Read the report… But first images related to the incident… Foot placed on chest, throat cut with sickle
February 15, Mahashivratri day. In Kusmi area of Sidhi district, 55-year-old Lala Kewat murdered 75-year-old priest Indrabhan Dwivedi by cutting his throat with a sickle. The priest was the caretaker of the Hanuman temple located in the tehsil premises. He had reached the temple on Sunday morning to perform Mahashivratri puja. While returning home, the attacker suddenly attacked him on his moving moped, causing Indrabhan to fall. The accused placed his foot on the priest’s chest and cut his throat with a sickle. He struck 8 times on the chest and neck. The blood-soaked priest suffered for a while. The accused tried to escape, but people caught him and handed him over to the police. No enmity then why such a murder… With this question, Dainik Bhaskar’s team reached the spot. The family told that it was the sacred day of Mahashivratri. Priest Indrabhan Dwivedi took a bath in the morning and wore saffron and yellow clothes. When his wife asked about tea as usual, he declined saying – Today is a fast. Today is Mahashivratri, so I need to reach the temple early for worship. Have to decorate the Lord… Saying this, Indrabhan left the house, while his wife got busy with daily chores. About 2 hours later, such news came that devastated the family’s happiness. The priest left home at 6 AM and reached the temple at the tehsil office within 15 minutes by moped. He performed proper worship and prayers of Lord Hanuman, adorned him with a robe and decorated him. He offered bhog, prasad, performed aarti and did chanting. The worship took him about one and a half hours. After the worship, he came out of the temple and started returning home on his moped. As soon as he reached the main road about 200 meters from the temple, the accused Lala, who was already waiting in ambush, attacked him with a knife. The priest lost control and fell down. As soon as he fell, the accused made multiple strikes on his neck, face and head one after another. After killing the priest, he said – Gave salvation on Mahashivratri On condition of anonymity, an eyewitness said that the accused committed a very brutal murder of the priest. After the murder, he was saying that he had given moksha to the pandit on Mahashivratri. Now he won’t have to wander. People present there were shocked to hear his words. The accused committed the incident deliberately. Perhaps he had fixed the day of Shivratri for this in advance. Wife said – He spent the whole day doing worship and studying religious scriptures The priest’s wife Lilavati Dwivedi says that the monster has destroyed my married life. Without any enmity, he made me a widow. I am very surprised what fault my priest husband had. He would not even talk much to anyone, let alone fight. He spent the whole day in worship and studying religious scriptures. Whenever they had free time, they would study and recite Srimad Bhagwat. If someone said “Jai Ram Ji Ki…”, he would respond with “Jai Ram Ji Ki…” in return. Otherwise, he would silently pass by on their way. He was so peaceful by nature that he never even argued with anyone, let alone getting into fights or quarrels. Family in terror, says cannot sleep due to fear Daughter-in-law Sandhya Dwivedi says tearfully that since the incident, not just the family but even nearby residents are terrified. Three days have passed since the incident, but it’s difficult to even take a nap due to fear. No one knows what incident might happen to whom and when. The accused used to say – The sound of the bell writhes like a snake on the chest
Family member Leela Sharma said that the accused used to say that Pandit, the sound of your bell writhes on my chest like a snake. The accused hates worship and prayers. He is an atheist. He wanted that no one should perform any religious rituals and ceremonies. He wanted to forcefully impose his atheism on everyone. He used to say- I won’t let those who perform worship and prayers live in this area. I will pick and kill everyone one by one. I won’t let anyone live in peace. Without any fight, he killed the priest just for this reason. Nephew said – Punished for being a Brahmin and priest Nephew Dhiresh Dwivedi said that uncle was murdered only because he was a Brahmin, because he was a temple priest… Has praying become a crime in this country now? In a trembling voice, the deceased’s nephew said that Uncle spent his entire life serving God, supporting people in their joys and sorrows, and working to unite society, but in return he received hatred and a brutal death. The priest’s daughter-in-law Sulochana Dwivedi broke down crying in front of the camera. Speaking about the bulldozer action, she said that until such action is taken, the accused will remain emboldened. What could be more heinous than killing an unarmed elderly priest without any fault. Even after killing, the accused continued to cut the throat and face with a knife Advocate Rajendra Prasad Tiwari is an eyewitness to the murder case. He says I saw with my own eyes how Lala Kevat was cutting the priest’s throat in the middle of the road. People were a little far away, seeing the attack, they also called out to stop. To this he said that if anyone comes to save him, I will cut him along with it. Blood was riding on his head. We kept pleading with him to stop. Even after Pandit ji’s death, he continued to attack him with a knife for about 5 minutes. After mutilating the priest’s body, he said, “I have finished the priest.” When the police came, they too hesitated for a moment seeing the accused’s rampage. The incident happened in front of my house, entire district is ashamed Local resident Dal Pratap Sen strongly condemned this heinous murder in the village, saying that the killing of the simple-natured priest in front of his own house is extremely painful and condemnable. This incident has not only brought shame to the entire village but also to the district. He says that such incidents create an atmosphere of fear and insecurity in society. There is an atmosphere of heavy anger and grief among the villagers regarding the incident. Threats after priest’s murder, family confined within compound walls Family members said that even after the brutal murder of the priest, the accused’s henchmen and family members threatened to kill and murder the remaining people while conducting surveillance. They have said that now there will be an all-out war and no one – children, elderly, seniors – will be spared. We will carry forward this tradition, after which everyone has stopped leaving their homes. Everyone is confined within four walls out of fear. Children have stopped going to school. It’s exam time and now what will happen to the children’s future, this incident has already had a deep impact on their minds. Used to harass those performing worship and prayers Villager Vishnu Sharma said that accused Lala Kevat has a criminal record. He has committed several crimes before. He harbored hatred towards Brahmins. He has assaulted Brahmins many times. He harasses people who perform worship and religious rituals. Administration sealed accused’s house and butcher shop In the priest murder case, the administration has sealed the main accused’s house and operating butcher shop. During the action, a joint team of revenue and police department was present at the spot. The administration posted notices outside the accused’s house and butcher shop clarifying that further legal proceedings will continue. According to officials, this step was taken based on facts that emerged during investigation. Meanwhile, police force is still deployed in the area. Tehsildar Rajesh Paras said that the administration took this action considering the growing public outrage and law and order situation. The accused’s shop was operating illegally and complaints had been received about it earlier as well. This step was taken after investigation. Police have taken the accused into custody In the priest murder case, police have acted swiftly and arrested the main accused. Police produced the accused in court, from where he was sent to jail. After the incident, police formed a special team and began questioning suspects and took the accused into custody based on technical evidence. During initial interrogation, the accused has provided important information related to the crime. However, police have not yet made a detailed disclosure of the entire case. Officials say that investigation is ongoing and other aspects of the case will also be revealed soon. Police said that a case has been registered against the accused under relevant sections. Additional police force has been deployed to maintain law and order in the area. Local people are angry about the incident, while the police claim that strict action will be taken against the culprits.