Mentally-ill husband, a 1.5-acre plot: Telangana woman beheaded by in-laws

A 28-year-old woman was beheaded in Telangana’s Mahbubnagar district, allegedly by her in-laws, over a property dispute on Monday, police have said. K Sunitha is survived by two daughters, aged five and two, and her husband, who is mentally ill, police said.

According to the police, a family dispute over a 1.5-acre plot led to the grisly murder. Sunitha married K Balaram around a decade ago. The couple quarrelled frequently. About a year ago, Balaram's elder brothers, Manya Naik and Pandu Naik, reportedly took him to Hyderabad for treatment for his mental illness.

According to a settlement facilitated by village elders, around 1.5 acres of agricultural land belonging to Balaram was reportedly registered in Sunitha's name to secure the future of her and her children. Sunitha and her daughters then moved in with her parents.

Following a complaint by Sunitha's father, Valya Naik, police have registered a case of murder against Manikya Naik, Manya Naik, Pandu Naik and Parvathy. Nagaraju told The Indian Express that Sunitha’s in-laws suspected she was in a relationship with someone else.

“They suspected that if Sunitha remarried, the land would go to her and her new husband. This led to a grudge, and they decided to kill her,” he said. According to the police, the murder was premeditated. “They made all preparations to kill her before she arrived.

They had been plotting for months,” he said. Nikhila Henry is an Assistant Editor at The Indian Express, based in Hyderabad. With a career spanni... Read More