Human sacrifice? Odisha man allegedly beheads villager, buries head in puja room

Bhubaneswar: A 40-year-old man in Odisha's Bolangir district has been arrested after allegedly killing a villager, beheading him and burying his head inside his puja room in what police suspect was an occult practice aimed at bringing back his estranged wife.

The case came to light last Thursday after police recovered the decapitated body of Santosh Kharsel, 45, from a pond in Bagada village. Kharsel, a resident of Tebadamunda village, had been missing since August 18.

During the investigation, police found that Kharsel had last been seen with Satrughna Sahu, 40, who was subsequently detained for questioning.

Sahu initially confessed to the killing and claimed that it followed a heated argument after the two had consumed alcohol, a police officer said.

However, during further questioning, Sahu allegedly told investigators that he had killed Kharsel in an attempt to get back his wife, who had left him around three years ago.

Following the disclosure, police exhumed Kharsel's head from Sahu's puja room and arrested him. Investigators also seized the weapon allegedly used in the murder.

Bolangir Superintendent of Police Abilash G said the accused and victim were not previously acquainted.

"The accused and victim did not know each other. After meeting Kharsel, Sahu invited him to his house and killed him."

"We have arrested the accused and also seized the murder weapon," the SP said.

Police initially suspected that Sahu had disposed of the victim's head elsewhere to mislead investigators. The discovery of the head buried inside the puja room subsequently led investigators to examine the alleged occult or human sacrifice angle.

"Initially, we suspected that the accused threw away the head to mislead police. Exhumation of the head from the puja room revealed the human sacrifice angle," the officer said.

Police are continuing their investigation to establish the exact circumstances surrounding the killing and determine whether others were involved.