Elderly man kills daughter-in-law, her mother

An elderly man allegedly killed his daughter-in-law and her mother in West Bengal's Nadia district on Monday, police said.

The incident occurred at Ashutoshpur village under Habibpur gram panchayat in Ranaghat police station area, they said.

The accused, Ananta Biswas (75), was taken into custody, and a bloodstained axe was recovered from the house, a senior police officer said.

''The accused’s wife had died a few days ago, following which his son's mother-in-law, Swapna Mondal (56), had come to the house for funeral rituals. The accused allegedly suspected his daughter-in-law, Shilpa Biswas (24) and her mother of causing his wife's death through black magic,'' he said.

Police said that on Monday morning, while the accused's son Patitpaban Biswas had gone to the local market, the two women were asleep inside the house when the accused allegedly attacked them with an axe. Both died on the spot.

On returning home, the son found his wife and mother-in-law lying in pools of blood and alerted neighbours. A police team reached the spot, recovered the bodies and sent them for post-mortem examination.

Police said a case has been registered and further investigation is underway.