Killing of 19-year-old college student triggers panic, tension in Buldhana village
NAGPUR: In what is suspected to be a case of human sacrifice, Ratna Temburne, a 19-year-old college student, was allegedly killed and buried by her father, Raibhan Tembhurne, 55, in their home premises in Bhandara's Kudegaon village on Wednesday, triggering panic and tension.
A school teacher, Temburne's act triggered a wave of protests in the village in the evening, forcing the police to fire in the air to pacify the mob. However, tension in the village continued even on Thursday as irate villagers pelted stones at the police and Temburne's home.
Bhandara (Rural) police have arrested seven people, including Raibhan, his two wives and four others who dug the grave.
Temburne's second daughter, Asmita, 16, and the youngest Seema, 12, have gone completely quiet with shock, the police told DNA.
The matter came to light on Wednesday when a villager, Baliram Brahmankar, while passing by Tembhurne's home, noticed that the family members were bathing their daughter Ratna, undressed.
Startled, he went to his home to find that Ratna was actually dead and a grave had been dug in the front yard. When he enquired with Temburne, the latter shouted back at him and reportedly told that Ratna was his daughter; he could do whatever he wished with her.
A shocked Brahmankar rushed to the village and reported the matter to Sarpanch Gangaram Raut and other villagers, who in turn tipped the Lakhandur police. Around 1 pm, three cops visited the village, but by that time, Temburne had buried the body., which was exhumed late in the evening in the presence of tehsildar.
Villagers have told the police that Temburne was performing a black-magic ritual at home for the last 20 days with the help of a woman priest, identified as Damayanta Naktode.
