Tarasing Police have arrested two brothers from Badangi village in Odisha’s Ganjam district for allegedly bludgeoning an 80-year-old man to death over suspicions of practising sorcery, officials said.
The incident came to light after Jalandhar Gauda (55), a resident of Badangi Gauda Sahi, lodged a formal complaint at the Tarasing police station on November 5, 2026. According to the complaint, unidentified miscreants broke into the house of his father, Trinath Gauda (80), on the night of November 4 while he was alone, and brutally killed him using a cement brick.
Based on the complaint, police registered a case (No. 442/2026) under Sections 103(1) and 332(a) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and launched an investigation. A scientific team visited the crime scene to collect forensic evidence.
Police investigations revealed that the deceased, Trinath Gauda, practised traditional healing (faith healing), which led some villagers to suspect him of practising sorcery. The accused brothers had been facing health issues in their family, with one sibling suffering from a prolonged fever. Believing that Trinath was responsible for their illness through black magic, the duo planned the attack.
On the night of the crime, the two brothers dragged Trinath out to his verandah, assaulted him with a wooden stick, and subsequently crushed his head and face with a heavy cement brick, causing his death on the spot. Both accused fled the village immediately after the attack.
Tarasing Inspector-in-Charge (IIC) Subhalaxmi Pujari confirmed the arrest of the accused brothers, identified as Abhimanyu Gauda and Sushanta alias Kalia Gauda, sons of Surendra Gauda of Badangi Gauda Sahi. They have been remanded in judicial custody after being produced in court.
Police have also recovered the murder weapons and key evidence, including a blood-stained cement brick, a wooden lathi, mobile phones, and the clothing worn by the accused during the crime.
