A man was beheaded and his wife hacked to death after a disagreement
with a grocer, according to authorities in India.
The killings took
place in the Mainpuri district of the northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh
Thursday, following an argument earlier that day.
The couple, who belonged
to the lowest hung of indian castle’s hierarchy had owed upper-caste shopkeeper Ashok Mishra
15 rupees (22 U.S. cents) but said they were unable to pay back the money,
authorities said.
According to
police, eyewitnesses said the couple, who were referred to as Bharat and Mamta,
had told
Mishra they would pay back their debt at the end of the day, once they
had received their wages as laborers.
After a heated
argument about 6 a.m. local time, as the couple headed to work in nearby
fields, police say
Mishra went home, grabbed an ax, and attacked the couple.
Both died.
"It is not
clear yet if the shopkeeper had some previous vengeance against the
couple," said Digambar Kushwaha, a local police official.
"The attacker
has confessed his crime to the police. The role of shopkeeper's wife in this
incident is not clear yet. We are investigating.
"We are also
probing some eyewitnesses to find out why no one tried to stop the shopkeeper."
Kushwaha said the
shopkeeper told police that the couple had verbally abused him.
The attacker and
his wife have both been arrested and the weapon used in the attack recovered,
he said.
Bharat and Mamta
leave behind four children -- three of them minors, according to authorities.
The Dalit community
in the village has blocked roads and protested over the incident.
Dalits, as India's
lowest caste, have long been vulnerable to discrimination and acts of violence.
The caste system is
officially abolished in India but social hierarchies often contribute to crime
and atrocities across the country.
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