RAIPUR: A man from Sulesa village in Chhattisgarh’s Jashpur district beat his wife to death over a suspected theft. It was also revealed that he had been married ten times and nine of his wives left him due to his violent and abusive behaviour. The 38-year-old Dhula Ram allegedly killed his tenth wife suspecting her to have stolen food items and a sari from a wedding ceremony. He then left the body hidden under the heap of dry leaves in the forest in Jashpur district in the state. The man beat his wife to death after a confrontation in which he accused her of stealing rice, cooking oil, and clothing from a wedding. The incident took place in Pandrapath area, at Bagicha region and only came to light after the decaying body began to emit a foul odour five days later. As per cops, the accused — Dhula Ram — had accompanied his wife, Basanti Bai, to a nearby wedding following which the incident occured. On Sunday afternoon, villagers noticed a foul smell emanating from a forested area near a drain. Upon investigating, they discovered a severely decomposed and partially concealed corpse. The face was reportedly disfigured beyond recognition. Based on initial evidence and witness accounts, the accused was arrested shortly after. According to police, Dhula Ram had grown increasingly suspicious and paranoid in his current marriage, fearing abandonment once again. This, compounded by the alleged theft, appears to have triggered the fatal assault, cops said.
