Odisha: Man murders 7-year-old thinking it will cure him of his illness

A man murdered a seven-year-old boy in Odisha’s Balangir district thinking that the act would cure his mental illness. The man and a self-proclaimed tantric, who advised him to kill the boy, have been arrested, police said on Monday.

The boy, Dasrath Parabhoi of Jhalerpadar village in the district, about 450 km west of Bhubaneswar, had gone missing since September 26. The next day, his body was found floating in a pond in the village with his hands tied and tongue slit.

The boy’s mother is a daily wage labourer while his father had migrated to Andhra Pradesh to work in a brick kiln.

During investigation police zeroed in on two men from the same village – Banke Behera and Hrusikesh Dash – with whom the boy was seen last. After being questioned, the duo admitted that they had lured the boy to accompany them on the pretext of treating him with snacks. Apparently, Parabhoi accompanied them because he knew them.

“Behera said Dash, a tantric, advised him to kill the boy to get rid of his illness. After killing the boy, they dumped his body in the pond,” Titlagarh sub-divisional police officer Dilip Purohit said.

Behera is said to have undergone treatment in several hospitals for the treatment of his illness. Ten years back, he had been arrested for his involvement in a murder case, but acquitted due to lack of evidence.