In a gruesome case from Odisha's Mayurbhanj district, a man has been arrested for allegedly murdering his wife and mother-in-law and burying them in his backyard. To conceal the crime, he planted banana trees over the burial site. The incident occurred in Sarapankha Nuagaon village, under the Kuliana police station limits.

The accused, identified as Debashis Patra, a 40-year-old pharmacist, is alleged to have killed his 25-year-old wife, Sonali Dalai, and 55-year-old mother-in-law, Somanti Dalai, on July 15. He then reported them missing to the Kuliana police on July 16. According to police, Debashis had invited his wife and mother-in-law to his house on July 12, purportedly to discuss reconciling their differences. However, on July 15, he allegedly killed them. It is believed that he crushed them to death with a stone while they were asleep.

After the murders, Debashis buried the bodies in a 10-foot-deep pit in the garden behind his house. To further conceal his crime, he planted banana saplings over the freshly dug soil.

The disappearance of Sonali and Somanti raised suspicions among the villagers. They noticed the disturbed soil and the recently planted banana trees in Debashis's lemon orchard. One villager, while assessing damage caused by a wild elephant that had strayed into the village, poked a crowbar into the ground and found it went in too deep, confirming their suspicions. The villagers alerted the police, who arrived at the scene and exhumed the decomposed bodies. The bodies were wrapped in polythene. The bodies were sent for post-mortem.

Police investigation revealed that Sonali was Debashis's second wife and that he was involved in a divorce suit with his first wife, who is a healthcare worker. He had been married to Sonali for two years, and they have a one-year-old son. Initial investigations suggest that domestic tensions may have been a motive for the murders. Baripada ASP said Debashish Patra confessed he killed his wife and mother-in-law over a domestic dispute. Police suspect that others may have been involved.

Debashis Patra has been taken into custody, and a detailed investigation is underway to ascertain the exact motive behind the crime. The incident has sent shockwaves through the local community, raising concerns about domestic violence.