Tortured elderly couple reside in burial ground with daughter in Odisha

JAGATSINGHPUR:  Unable to bear the alleged torture by his son and daughter in-law, an 80-year-old man, his wife and daughter have resigned to their fate and made the burial ground their home for the last four to five days. Babaji Sethi and his wife Kanchan are residents of Bila Arilo village within Tirtol police limits. They have two children, son Prashant and daughter Mitali. 

Though Mitali was married off in 2003, she had been living at Babaji’s place with her three children for the last nine years due to marital discord. However, Mitali’s return to her parents’ house led to regular fights in the family. Babaji’s son Prashant and daughter-in-law Miti allegedly tortured Mitali and her children and forced them to leave the house. 

After villagers intervened, it was decided that Babaji, who works as a daily wager, would stay separately with his wife Kanchan, Mitali and her children in a separate house.  They shifted to a different house but Prashant and Miti reportedly continued to harass the family.

On February 10, the couple threatened to set the house on fire following which Babaji filed a police complaint. The matter was however solved later. But Prashant and his wife threatened Babaji and others to leave the house.  Without any option, Babaji and his family started staying at the cremation ground. 

“Our son and daughter-in-law beat us regularly even though we lived separately. When we complained to police, they asked us to approach the court. We are living in the burial ground without food,” said a teary-eyed Kanchan.

Tirtol IIC Jugal Kishore Das said police had solved the dispute but didn’t have information about the recent issue. Contacted, chairman of Tirtol block Manoj Kumar Behera said he has urged the sarpanch of Amberi to give the family shelter in an anganwadi shelter at the village till the dispute is sorted.