Darbhanga, Oct. 7: Angry with his wife for not taking their child to health centre for vaccination, a man chopped off her head and carried it to a Durga Puja pandal near his house in Jhakharia village under Singhwara police station in the district.
The incident took place yesterday morning when the entire village was soaked in Durga Puja festivities.
Hira Yadav (30), a carpenter, has confessed to his crime and is currently lodged at Darbhanga district jail. He was produced in front of chief judicial magistrate, Darbhanga, and remanded in judicial custody for 14 days.
According to Hira’s confession, he got into an altercation with his wife, Rina Devi (26), over vaccinating their daughter. The wife was against getting the child vaccinated, as she wanted to go to the fair. She presumed that the girl’sbody temperature might shoot fever if she is vaccinated.
Furious over his wife’s “excuse”, Hira cut off her head with a sharp-edged weapon and walked through the streets of the village, dangling the head in one hand and the weapon in another.
More than 1,000 devotees had assembled at a Durga Puja pandal at Singhwara Chowk, just 100m from Hira’s residence.
Hira went there carrying Rina’s head from which blood was dripping. Seeing the gory sight, the devotees started running helter-skelter, resulting in a stampede in which many suffered bruises.
Darbhanga senior superintendent of police Vikas Vaibhav told The Telegraph: “A case of murder under Section 302 of the Indian Penal Code has been registered against Hira Yadav under Singhwara police station. Hira has already confessed to his crime after his arrest. However, Rina’s body was sent to Darbhanga Medical College and Hospital for post-mortem.”
Sources said none in the crowd at the fair at Singhwara Chowk dared to catch Hira. Police reached the spot but did not dare arrest him. The police ordered him to place Rina’s head with her body. Hira obeyed after which he was arrested.
Rina’s father, Phirangi Yadav, came to Singhwara and tried to implicate Hira’s parents in the case though Hira has already confessed to his crime. Hira’s parents live in old house, 200m from his newly constructed residence.
